For Once a Damsel
by liljemsey
Summary: To some the steady drip, drip, drip of water would be considered tranquil and soothing, but for Temperance Brennan it evoked a terror deep inside like she had never felt before. She was alone, and terrified that no one would come and save her.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This takes place after the Season Five finale. I have changed the reasons for Brennan and Daisy going to the Maluku Islands to fit the story and Booth won't feature until later on but bare with me he will come in eventually and it will all be worth it. **

**I'm in my final year at uni so I'll be very busy but I've set an update schedule for myself that I will post a new chapter every Monday.**

**I re-uploaded this as I was having some problems with the story not showing up in the archives. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read and review the previously posted story.**

**For once a Damsel: Chapter One**

It's funny how the same sound can provoke radically diverse reactions between different people. How the ringing of a church bell can bring back memories of elation to a couple remembering their wedding day or devastation to a town in which every chime represents a community member who lost their lives in the war.

To some the steady drip, drip, drip of water would be considered tranquil and soothing but for Temperance Brennan it evoked a terror deep inside unlike she had ever felt before.

_Four Days Earlier_

The air was hot and humid and the jungle trees were still as no breeze blew to give reprieve to the group of archaeologists, anthropologist and the handful of grad students who had been lucky enough to get chosen to partake in the dig. In all the group totalled to fifteen, including the two local guides and one armed policeman assigned to watch over the dig. Security was relaxed as the sectarian conflict that had caused the mass grave they were there to investigate was long over and threat of attack was all but non-existent.

It was times like these, when the sun was beating down from high in the sky that Temperance Brennan cursed her pale skin. They had been in the Maluku Islands for only four days but already her grad student, the vivacious Daisy Wick had developed a nice bronze tan while she had the makings of a nasty sunburn or her back where her shirt had ridden up and exposed a patch of skin above the waist of her pants as she spent hours kneeling down in the grave. The team working on the dig had come from all across the globe, including Germany, England, Japan, Italy and Australia and the work site was rarely quiet as they chatted amongst themselves as they worked. While she found the mix of cultures fascinating, Brennan tended to keep to herself, preferring to concentrate on doing her job than what Australians called summer footwear.

"Thongs," Daisy had told her giggling on their second night as they lay on their cots in the canvas tent they shared, "Isn't that just hilarious. I'll have to remember to tell Lance that when we get back."

Daisy had then proceeded to cry after she remembered that Sweets had said he didn't know if he could wait for her to get back and Brennan had found herself awkwardly trying to comfort the girl without a clue what the right thing to do or say was. Usually she relied on her partner, Special Agent Seeley Booth or her best friend Angela to tell her what was socially appropriate in these situations but Booth was in Afghanistan on a special assignment for the army and Angela was off travelling with her husband Dr. Hodgins so she was on her own.

Being alone was something she was used to. It provided her with protection because if she let no one in then there was no way they could turn around and hurt her. She had learnt after her parents and brother abandoned her when she was fifteen that you had to look after yourself and if that meant keeping everyone at an arm's length then that was how she would do it. Angela had successfully worked her way through the walls she put up around herself and Booth had been chipping some fairly sizeable chunks out but still she kept a bit to herself.

It was why when lunch was called that she stayed down in the pit. She found if she immersed herself completely in identifying the victims of this horrific massacre then she would forget that Booth, who had ploughed large enough holes in her protective walls to actually make her care, was risking his life in the war torn Middle East and that one of the last memories they had had before parting ways was her practically stomping all over his heart. Metaphorically of course, for had she actually done so there was no way Booth would've made it to Afghanistan in the first place as he would have been very much dead.

Booth was a man who relied on his feelings to guide him through life while she only trusted facts, things she could measure, taste, smell and hear. The facts couldn't lie and she situated herself safely within logic to prevent any unnecessary hurt. Booth had told her that he had to move on and she had rationally accepted this notion. Booth needed someone who could give him what he desires and she couldn't do that, so she'd had to let him go.

"Dr. Brennan all the good sandwiches will be gone if you stay down there much longer," one of the guides Charlie called down to her, his gap toothed smile beaming from his weathered face.

Charlie and their other guide Tessa had grown up in the area and knew it like the back of their hands. While their English was near perfect, many on the Island only spoke Indonesian and Tessa and Charlie were on hand to translate when necessary. Tessa was Charlie's eldest daughter and he proudly told them stories of how she was the first in their family to ever graduate from high school. While she had been pleasant enough to the other workers at the dig she hadn't really given them the time of day, but Charlie had seemed to take a liking to her and she found herself warming to the gap toothed guide and his daughter.

"I'm okay, thanks Charlie," she said looking up at him, "I want to keep working, these lacrimal bones aren't going to identify themselves."

Charlie rewarded her with a resounding laugh and she smiled back at him. Of the twelve person team she and Daisy were the only forensic anthropologists making their jobs larger than anyone else's. They were there to identify the remains the archaeologists uncovered, giving names to the people who had been brutally killed during the Maluku sectarian conflict.

In the four short days they had been there, six skeletons had already been discovered in the earth with the promise of literally hundreds more. She and Daisy more than had their work cut out for them and she was eager to not let the bodies literally pile up around her. If Booth or Angela had been there they would have pestered her about the importance of not skipping meals but without their presence she found herself easily slipping back into old habits.

Without the equipment afforded to her at the Jeffersonian, Brennan was recording all of her findings in a black spiral notepad. Every skeleton got four pages and at the bottom a name, should the limited resources at their disposal (mainly the island's missing persons list) grant them that luxury. Daisy was on hand with a Polaroid camera whose photos were then stuck alongside their corresponding page. Their system worked quite nicely, although Brennan found herself missing the luxury of her computer back in DC. She found the method of writing everything by hand tedious and her hand often cramped painfully by the end of the day. Still, she reasoned with herself, it was all worth it as they were giving those innocent people who got caught in the crossfire back their identities and that was what truly mattered.

The sun had long since set by the time Brennan finally ascended the ladder and out of the dig site. Daisy trailed diligently behind her, chatting animatedly about a game of cards that was planned for that night.

"You know how to play poker right? Because I'm terrible and I really don't want to lose and I figured with you on my team that couldn't happen what with your photographic memory and all," Daisy said enthusiastically.

"Near photographic," Brennan corrected her, "And I won't be playing. I'm going to go through the missing persons file again to see if there's something we've missed on the fifth skeleton."

"Aww come on Dr. Brennan," Daisy all but whined, "It'll be fun and the others have commented that you haven't joined in on anything."

"I'm not here to make friends," Brennan said stiffly, "I'm here to do my job."

"Right," Daisy backpedalled, not wanting to offend her mentor, "Do you need any help?"

"No," she shook her head finally, remembering how excited Daisy had seemed earlier, "I'll be fine Miss Wick, you go have fun."

"Are you sure? Because I'd love to help if you needed me and you know how they always say two eyes are better than one and I don't want you to be all alone."

"It's fine," Brennan cut off the younger woman's characteristic rambling, "I'll join you in the mess tent for dinner and then you can go and play your game and I'll retire to our tent."

"Okay," Daisy said seemingly happy that Brennan would at least be joining everybody for dinner, "Remind me to tell you about the time Jackson from Australia ate an entire seven pound of steak in one sitting."

Brennan screwed up her nose. She was pretty sure she wouldn't be reminding Daisy to tell her that story. True, she had managed to get a pretty good feel for everybody from the stories Daisy told her each night as they prepared for bed but she still didn't want to get weighed down by personal relationships when a more important task was at hand.

Tessa cooked for them every day and had so far never disappointed and the glorious smells that emanated from the gazebo like structure deemed the mess tent were no exception. Brennan's stomach grumbled noisily as they approached and she flushed remembering she hadn't had anything to eat since breakfast. Booth would kill her if he knew. She had a sudden pang for one of the bagel's Booth always left on her desk if he knew she was likely to work through lunch.

In situations where everyone talked at once Brennan often found herself getting overwhelmed. She was a genius but for some reason her superior intellect didn't lend itself to social situations and in the cacophony of noise that was occurring in the mess tent she once again began to miss her partner terribly. Without her ever having to say anything Booth always seemed to sense when she was uncomfortable and would position himself next to her and speak only to her, suddenly narrowing her world so it was only the two of them and she would instantly be at ease again. Unlike Daisy who seemed to have the ability to flit from conversation to conversation like she was flicking a switch Brennan concentrated on eating her dinner as quickly as she could so she could escape to the safety of their tent where she could relax in solitude. She looked up from her pasta when Charlie squeezed his body in between her and Daisy giving her a wide grin.

"Tessa did good didn't she," he said taking a large forkful of pasta.

"She certainly seems to be quite skilled in the kitchen," Brennan said.

"She gets it from her mother," he said sadly, "My Aini passed away when Tessa was sixteen and she was a huge help in raising her younger brothers and sisters."

"I'm sorry," she said sincerely, "That must have been hard."

"We had each other," Charlie said smiling, "That helped. But enough sadness for tonight, you know there has been talk around the camp that you are a superhero."

"That's not accurate," she shook her head, "I'm a scientist."

"Breanne from England tells me you help solve murders," Charlie said, "That sounds pretty super to me."

"That doesn't make me a hero. Actually the word hero is rooted in Greek mythology literally meaning protector or defender, of which I'm neither. My partner Special Agent Seeley Booth he's more the protector or defender, not by choice of my own of course, he won't let me have a gun which makes it difficult to defend," she said.

"Why won't he let you have a gun?" Charlie asked.

"I'm not sure as he knows I'm a good shot. It may stem from when I accidently shot him but I maintain that was only a flesh wound and didn't incapacitate him enough to stop him from carrying me over the snakes released by the criminal we were chasing," Brennan told him.

"Perhaps your partner likes to be the one protecting you," Charlie chuckled.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan said tilting her head.

"By not giving you a gun then you must rely on him to protect you," Charlie said, "Nothing makes a man feel better than looking after his lady. Nothing made me happier than looking after my Aini."

"I'm not his lady," Brennan said sadly, then shook her head to shake the thoughts that had started to filter into her head, "We're work partners. I perceive Booth's reluctance to give me a weapon as a way to exert his alpha male tendencies."

"I have never met this Booth but I know something about love," Charlie said tapping his nose, "Not just any man would carry his lady over many snakes with a gun shot wound."

"It was just a flesh wound," she said quietly, "He was perfectly fine."

"Trust Charlie on this," Charlie said, "This Booth you speak of, he sounds like a fine man. You should hold onto him."

Brennan was horrified at the tears that suddenly pricked her eyes. Charlie's words while innocent had touched something deep inside of her. He couldn't have possibly known that she had literally just let Booth go but he had touched on something she had been internally torturing herself over ever since they had parted ways at the airport. Rationally she understood why she had turned him down and let him go but there was a niggle at the back of her brain that left her doubting herself, something which made her feel more out of control than she had ever felt.

"I-I'm sorry excuse me," she said hurriedly pushing her chair back, appalled at how her voice trembled.

She head both Charlie and Daisy call out her name as she rushed away from the mess tent and across the site to where her own tent was situated. Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment at her emotional reaction to Charlie's inadvertent advice. He had given her no warning and she had not had time to throw up her protective walls, giving his innocent words the chance to penetrate and hit the insecurities she tried so hard to mask.

The relief the sanctuary her tent provided hit her full force as she stepped through the canvas flap and dropped down onto her cot. Here in the solitude of the four canvas walls she could concentrate on the job. Of the feeling of the missing persons folder she roughly pulled off the small wooden table that sat between their two cots and begun to flip through quickly to take her mind off the embarrassing display she had put on.

Alone inside the tent she could convince herself that by letting him go she hadn't made the biggest mistake of her life.

**A/N: Drop me a line and let me know what you think. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2

Her experience with abandonment and disappointment had long since taught her the skill of compartmentalising and she was grateful of that that night. She blocked out the sounds of the game of poker that rang out through the camp and threw herself into her work. The fifth full skeleton pulled from the dig belonged to a young girl, aged around five, evidenced in the ___epiphyseal_ growth found in the bones. The deterioration of the femur suggested bone cancer and she could imagine that the poor child would have been in a lot of pain before she died. The difficulty was in trying to identify the child as so far the missing persons records did not provide any links as to who this girl might be.

Many in the region were of the lowest socio economic standings and may not have had access to the medical care this girl had no doubt-ably needed making it near impossible to get a positive ID. Had she had her team with her she could have asked Angela to provide a sketch from the victim's skull which could have made the whole process much easier but without her friend's expertise it was proving to be a largely frustrating experience.

Brennan would have liked to have kept working late into the night but she could hear the night's activities winding up outside as everybody said good night to one another and she found that she could simply not face the inquisitive questioning that would accompany Daisy's arrival back in their tent. As quickly as she could she deposited the file back on the table and ducked under the covers, cringing as the dust and soil that accumulated on her clothes throughout the day made their way onto the sheets. She closed her eyes as she heard Daisy bid everyone goodnight and hoped that the younger woman would buy her ruse or at least respect it enough to not question her that evening.

"Dr. Brennan?" Daisy called softly and Brennan could picture her peeking her head inside the tent carefully. She almost felt bad for ignoring her co-worker but knew that if she answered questions would be asked that she really didn't feel up to answering at the moment. She could just imagine the look of pity on Daisy's face as she questioned her earlier emotional reaction and while she was well used to receiving them she couldn't bear to see it on the younger woman's face.

She fought to keep her breathing slow and even as she heard the other woman putter quietly around the tent, getting herself ready for bed. She hoped that Daisy would fall asleep quickly so she could give up her ruse and at least get changed into her bed clothes. In her haste to get under the covers she hadn't even had a chance to take her shoes off and they were suddenly stifling under the thin sheet.

"Goodnight Dr. Brennan," Daisy said quietly as she switched off the light and Brennan was suspicious that her guise hadn't been as well bought as she had believed. Still the younger woman had given her the respect to let her be for the time being as she was thankful that for once Daisy's spirited personality had been quelled by her obvious recognition that her boss needed some space.

She had meant to stay awake until it was clear for her to get up and change into her pyjama's but the long day spent out under the beating sun had caught up with her and she had soon slipped into a much needed sleep. Her dreams were plagued with images of Booth, dressed head to toe in his military uniform walking away for her and as loud as she screamed for him he couldn't hear. In the dream she had the distinct feeling that she was falling and Booth was the only one who could catch her but he kept on walking even as she stretched her arms out to him so hard that her shoulders ached with the strain.

Her breath caught in her throat as she woke with a start and she sat gasping for air as her heart thumped heavily in her chest. The dream left her feeling queasy and she scrubbed a hand over her eyes in frustration as a single tear dripped onto her cheek. She hoped in her agitated state she hadn't woken Daisy and looked over to make sure the younger woman was still asleep. Daisy's bed was empty and she surmised that the other woman had probably gone to the bathroom as it was too dark inside the tent for it to be morning. Sighing heavily she flopped back down onto her back squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to quell the hopeless feeling that had settled in her stomach after visions of Booth's retreating back filtered through her mind.

In the quiet morning air she heard the door to the tent open softly but couldn't bring herself to open her eyes and acknowledge Daisy's presence. The remnants of despair still lingered from her dream and she wasn't sure that she would be able to mask them from the perceptive younger woman so she kept her eyes firmly shut. She was so caught up in trying to keep her face neutral that she didn't notice that two sets of footsteps entered the tent and the first moment she recognised that something wasn't right was when she felt her arms be suddenly pinned to her sides as something was roughly shoved over head.

She cried out in surprise and struggled against the unseen forces that held her to the bed but was silenced when a sharp blow was dealt to her stomach effectively winding her and rendering her unable to speak. She was pulled up to a sitting position and her hands pulled roughly behind her back and tied together by a coarse rope that bit painfully into her skin. Her breath slowly returned to her and she lashed out with her still unrestrained legs. Her foot connected with what was obviously a human body which cursed loudly in Indonesian. The sack that covered her head left her disorientated but she didn't have time to panic as her survival instincts kicked in. She couldn't see her attackers but floundered desperately on the bed as she tried to find some leverage to stand. Left blind by the sack placed over her head she had no chance in seeing the blow that was delivered to her head and only had a second to hope that Daisy had the sense to alert someone when she returned to the tent to discover her gone before she surrendered to unconsciousness.

The first thing she noticed on waking was the ringing in her ears and the pounding in her head. The next was that her legs had been bound tightly with the same coarse rope used on her arms and that she was lying on her stomach in the back of what was probably a pickup truck of some kind. With no way to brace herself her face connected painfully with the metal floor of the truck every time the truck hit a bump and she could feel the sticky blood that ran down her face from her nose. The sack was still over her head and she gave into the panic that sat below the surface as the roaring in her ears intensified. She turned her head to the side to try and take some of the pressure off her broken nose and indulged herself in letting out a pained whimper.

"Is someone there?" she heard a male voice ask in an unmistakable Australian accent from somewhere to her left.

She wasn't even sure she had heard it correctly over the squeaking of the truck's tires as it travelled down the road but the glimmer of hope that sparked inside of her that she might not actually be alone could not be ignored. She wracked her brain to try and remember the name of the male Australian who had joined them at the dig, trying to recall the name Daisy had said when she told her stories.

"Jackson?" she said finally, hoping she was correct.

"Dr. Brennan?" the Australian replied, "Is that you?"

"Yes," she said biting back a painful groan as her head connected with the truck bed, "It's me."

"What's going on?" Jackson asked, "Where are the others?"

"We've been kidnapped," she said matter-of-factly, "For what purpose I cannot be certain. As for the whereabouts of the others I do not know. My head is covered and my arms and legs are bound so I'm both unable to see and move."

"Mine too," Jackson said, "Hurts like a motherfucker, excuse my language."

"It's alright, if any situation warrants profanity then I suppose this is it," she said earnestly.

"Daisy told me you're kind of a genius," Jackson said.

"I suppose," she said modestly.

"So got any ideas on how to get out of this in that genius head of yours?" Jackson said.

"Do what they say," she said, "For the time being just do whatever they say. In hostage situations there is a far greater chance of the kidnappers resorting to violence when the hostage fights back. Until we know exactly what it is that they want from us we comply with their demands."

"Alright Doc," Jackson said, "We'll bide our time before we kick their asses."

They fell into a contemplative silence and even though she couldn't see him Brennan felt a little more at ease to know that she wasn't alone. She still had no idea why it was that they had been taken but she was sure it wouldn't be long before the kidnappers made their demands known. This wasn't the first time she had been kidnapped in a foreign country and she had always managed to work her way out of those situations. She only hoped that this time would be no different.

She bit back a groan as her head slammed back into the tray as they went over a large bump and she blinked back the stars that swam in front of her eyes. Jackson's own groan joined hers as well as another female groan that made her body tense. It wasn't just the two of them in the back of the truck but before she had a chance to call out the truck began to slow.

"Pretend to be unconscious," she said quickly to whoever could hear, "We may be able to learn more about their motives if they think we're not listening."

Several voices yelled out in Indonesian as their truck came to a stop and Brennan cursed herself for not learning enough of the native language before she came. She heard several car doors slam closed and knew that there must be more than one truck. If they got Jackson and her it only made sense that the rest of their camp was taken as well and supposed that the other occupant of the truck must be someone who belonged with their group. She let her entire body go limp as heavy footsteps approached and the creaking of the truck bed opening signified their kidnapper's arrival.

"You try anything you die," stilted English was growled at them and she felt what felt distinctively like the barrel of a gun thrust into her stomach but still she made herself stay limp.

She was rolled roughly onto her back and she bit back a cry as her head banged into the side of the truck bed. She felt herself being dragged and braced herself for the fall that would accompany being dropped off the back. Her body hit the ground like a sack and she couldn't help the pained cry that fell from her lips. Several other dull thuds with corresponding cries sounded around her and she knew the others must have suffered a similar fall.

"Quiet bitch," a voice growled at her and she bit her lip as her arms were pulled roughly above her head. She tried to concentrate on anything that could ascertain their surroundings as she was dragged along the ground by her restrained arms but with her face still covered it was near impossible for her to pick out any sound that might give it away. It hadn't felt like they had travelled a long way but she couldn't be sure of how long she had been unconscious for.

The rough ground cut into her already dirty clothes and she was at once thankful that she hadn't changed out of her clothes the night before. Her feet were still encased in sneakers which prevented the sharp rocks from cutting into her feet and her jean clad legs were saved the same fate. The thin tank top she wore did nothing to stop the jagged edges from biting into her skin and she was sure that her back would be covered in cuts and bruises by the time this journey was over.

The blood on her face was beginning to dry by the time she was dropped unceremoniously to the ground and the cloth over her head was beginning to stick to her face making her feel claustrophobic. She was hauled suddenly to her feet and wavered as her bound legs fought to stay balanced. She thought she would fall flat on her face but was pushed into a hard chair and felt rough hands undoing the ropes at her feet. They were prepared for her this time and before she had a chance to lash out two other hands grabbed each leg and tied them to each leg of the chair while her arms were wrenched above her head and hooked over something leaving them stretched painfully above her.

She could hear scuffling around her and thuds indicating bodies hitting the floor. She counted fourteen thuds, one for each member of their group she surmised. She could make out some groaning and someone was muttering in Japanese but above it all was the angry Indonesian being barked at them.

"Quiet!" someone roared and an accompanying bang shocked them all into silence.

The sack covering her head was ripped off, pulling painfully at her nose where the blood had dried to the material and she was suddenly face to face with her kidnappers.

**A/N: Send your poor author a review and let me know what you're thinking. Constructive criticism is always welcome.**


	3. Chapter 3

The eyes that stared back at her were cold and relentless and Brennan felt her whole body shiver at the lack of humanity she saw there. The man standing in front of her smiled cruelly as he leaned in so their faces were nearly touching. She recoiled as far as her restrained body let her, his putrid breath blowing warmly onto her face making her stomach roll. Behind him stook twelve or so men each armed with automatic weapons of various descriptions and at their feet lay fourteen bodies each bound with a burlap sack thrown over their heads.

"Temperance Brennan," the man in front of her spoke, his thick accent doing nothing to cover his perfect English, "We knew you were coming."

She didn't say anything to acknowledge the fear that sparked in her heart that he knew her name. The fact that she was the only one strapped to a chair while the others still lay masked on the floor alluded to the fact that she was the one they were after.

"Your reputation precedes you," the man said, "Tell me. Did you think that by coming here you would be doing some good?"

She stared back at him stubbornly, her blue eyes glittering with malice for a man whose intent she still did not know. When she didn't answer him he backhanded her across the face, making her head whip back painfully. She grunted with the effort of not giving him the satisfaction of hearing her in pain and glared back at him when her vision had cleared.

"Those bodies in the ground remain nameless as they deserve to be and no American bitch is going to come here and ruin everything we fought for," he spat in her face.

So she knew why she was so important to them. She was in charge of giving the victims their identities back while this man and his group had obviously been involved in stripping them away. She knew of the sectarian conflict that plagued the region in the last decade but had thought, like the rest of their group that it was long over. It appeared that this man and the rest of his followers were in the belief that the war was still going on.

"You will tell me who else you've told about who you found in that hole," he said grabbing the gun of the man closest to him and pointing it to her forehead.

She remembered her words from earlier, urging Jackson to do whatever their kidnappers did in order to protect themselves. In truth her findings had been kept between Daisy and herself as they were the only ones concerned with identifying victims of this massacre.

"Nobody," she ground out, "I haven't told anybody who we found."

"Liar," the man roared using the butt of the gun to hit her in the stomach.

She gasped at the unmistakable snap of ribs sounded and her breath was once again knocked from her lungs. Her chest burned from here her raised arms strained the muscles and every breath felt like fire burning through her body.

"I'm not lying," she gasped, "My findings have been contained to myself."

The man yelled something at her in Indonesian and then turned and motioned to one of his men. She watched in horror as a mask was ripped off the closest body on the floor revealing the terrified face of Dr. Kent, the archaeologist who had travelled to the dig from Britain.

"Please she's telling the truth," the terrified woman pleaded as she was yanked to her feet. Tears were streaming down her face as she was dragged to stand in front of where Brennan was bound.

"You will come to learn Dr. Brennan," the man said as he paced in front of her, his partner hooking the sobbing archaeologists hand's above her head in much the same fashion as Brennan's own so that her feet dragged a little on the floor, "That I do not take well to being lied to."

Brennan couldn't look away as the woman hanging in front of her was riddled with bullets. The gun shots echoed through the room they were in and the screams around her fell on her deaf ears as she watched in abject horror. When the man finally stopped shooting the hysterical sobbing of the still masked people on the floor filled the room. Brennan herself couldn't breathe as she stared at the body swaying from the residual force of the bullets that had been slammed through it.

"You might want to think about your answer a little bit," the man said handing his gun back to one of his followers and pulling her face to his and crushing his lips to hers, "I'll be back soon."

Brennan almost gagged against the putrid taste of his mouth but stopped short when he hit her across the face again, laughing as he let the room. The men left with the guns made short work of removing the sacks over the other dig site workers heads and Brennan was relieved to see them all looking terrified but relatively unharmed. Brennan had to look away as Dr. Kent's body was roughly pulled from the hook, a sickening crack echoing through the room as her shoulder was obviously dislocated with the crude movements. There was no thud of a body hitting the floor so she assumed that they must've taken it with them as their heavy footsteps faded until the room was bathed in silence. Her heart was beating so fast she felt like everyone in the room could hear it and she took deep breaths to try and calm herself down. It wouldn't help anybody for her to panic so she had to try and be as rational as the situation allowed.

"Is everyone alright?" she asked clearing her throat when she felt like she could talk.

She took a moment to actually look at everyone who lay staring up at her and noticed almost proudly that Daisy was the only one to have a bruise on her face, having obviously caused their kidnappers the most trouble when trying to restrain her. She was sure she herself would be sporting a similar injury.

"Why is this happening?" one of the archaeologists, Dr. Wagner from Germany asked.

"They obviously don't want the names of these people getting out," Jackson said.

"Why?" one of the Japanese grad students asked.

"They make a more powerful statement with no identity," Brennan said softly, "By effectively never knowing what has happened to their family members these people suffer more than if we were to bring them the knowledge that they were killed."

"Dr. Kent is dead," a dejected voice said softly, the British accent belying the fact that she was Dr. Kent's grad student. Brennan berated herself over the fact that she couldn't remember the young woman's name.

"It's okay," Daisy said and Brennan looked at her co-worker in surprise. They were the first words Daisy had spoken since they had been taken and she found herself oddly relieved to hear the familiar tone of the younger woman's voice.

"Dr. Brennan will get us out of here," Daisy said optimistically, "She's the smartest person I've ever met. She'll know what to do."

Brennan felt a cold feeling of dread creep into her stomach at Daisy's words. She had never had anyone put as much trust in her than her grad student had just done and if it hadn't been for their life threatening situation she might've even have been pleased at the praise, but Daisy had promised something huge to a group of desperate people and as confident as she was in her own abilities the younger woman may have well promised too much.

"We know what she can do to get us out of here," Dr. Andrews from Australia piped up, "She can tell the bastards who else she told about who is down in that grave and we can be done with this whole thing."

"I haven't told anybody else," Brennan replied hotly, "No one but Miss Wick and I who have been working on identifying the remains have been privy to who they are."

"Dr. Brennan is telling the truth," Charlie said, "She hasn't even told old Charlie and I have a very trustworthy face." He winked at her and smiled reassuringly and she was overcome with how grateful she was for his support.

"Who are these people Charlie?" Dr. Bartoli from Italy asked, trying to roll his bound body over so he could see their guide, "You must've gathered some of what they were saying."

"They are Muslim radicals," Charlie explained with a sigh, "As you know the war that raged here in the last decade started with a dispute between Christian and Muslims and gradually escalated until the whole province was segregated. Thousands of people lost their homes and lives and it wasn't until Laskar Jihad disbanded that the conflict finally resolved itself. These men are leftover from the conflict. Some believe it was resolved unfairly and these men do not wish for their victims to be released. As Dr. Brennan said, more pain is inflicted on the families of these people by not knowing their fates. As for what else they said, I will just say that they weren't very polite about foreigners."

"So what do we do?" Dr. Bartoli asked, "They obviously don't believe Dr. Brennan when she tells them she has not told anybody."

"Maybe Charlie or Tessa should try and communicated with them in Indonesian," the Japanese grad student said, "It might make the case more plausible."

"Well whatever we decide we must do it quickly," Dr. Wagner said, "It sounds as if someone is coming."

Heavy footsteps sounded down the hall outside the room in which they were being kept. Each footstep sounded like a clock counting down, to what fate they weren't sure but fourteen sets of eyes looked to the doorway in fear, the room silent apart from the heavy breathing of the terrified occupants, all unsure of what was coming next.

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has read and left a review I really appreciate your feedback. It would be awesome if you could also let me know if this story is showing up in the archives for you guys and gals and of course let me know your thoughts on the story. **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: It's Monday again so that means update time! I managed to sort out my issues with the archives so I'm a happy little vegemite now! Thanks to everyone who has managed to find this story and send me through a review. **

**For Once a Damsel: Chapter Four**

The same man returned but with only four armed men this time. Brennan felt her whole body recoil as he approached her, kicking Jackson in the stomach as he stepped past. She could still taste the horrible tang of his mouth on hers and her stomach rolled at the thought of it happening again.

"I hope you've had enough time to think about your answer," he grinned evilly as he walked two fingers from her shoulders down towards her breasts.

Brennan didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was getting to her so she made herself stay perfectly still and glared back at him with as much malice as she could muster. Tessa and Charlie both started speaking In Indonesian at the same time, not being able to watch as the man groped the bound forensic anthropologist.

"Shut them up," the man said over his shoulder to the armed men.

She barely had time to bite back a scream as gun shots echoed through the room and knew without even having to look that Charlie and Tessa were dead.

"I'm going to ask you again," the man said turning his attention back to her, "Who else knows who you've found in that grave?"

"No one," Brennan said forcing herself to speak, "I haven't told anyone, I promise."

"I'm disappointed," the man sighed forcing her head to the side and exposing her neck, "I thought you would've been smart enough to know when to tell the truth."

He leaned in close and ran his tongue down her neck and her survival instinct kicked in when his hands began running down her body. Using as much leverage as she could gain she swung her head forward and slammed it into his. The action left her seeing stars but it had the desired effect as he reared back in pain.

"You stupid bitch," he growled smacking her in the side of her already bruised face, making her mouth fill with blood as her teeth cut into the inside of her cheek.

She spat the blood out and grimaced as her vision swam. She had already received several blows to the head and knew she wouldn't be able to handle many more before her body compensated with unconsciousness. Her shoulders were beginning to ache with the strain of being secured over her head and her chest still burned with every breath she took.

"You're a scientist Dr. Brennan," the man leered, "So I think you will appreciate what is going to happen next."

He turned to his men and said something in Indonesian. The armed men nodded and in quick succession used the butt of their weapons to knock out the dig members from Italy and Germany as well as the local policeman who had been guarding the dig. The grad student from Britain whimpered as the men brought their guns down towards her face, but they pulled back at the last second and laughed cruelly as tears ran down her face.

"I'm going to conduct a little experiment," the man sneered, "And see which one of your friends will be the first to scream.

His men began to carry the unconscious bodies from the room and Brennan found she could hold her tongue no longer.

"Please, they don't know anything," she pleaded, feeling the first tears begin to fall.

"Maybe they don't," the man grinned gleefully as he spotted her tears, "But it'll be fun to find that out on my own."

He twisted his finger into her side and she cried out as pressure was put on her broken ribs.

"Listen closely," he told her from the doorway, the last of the unconscious people being carried out in front of him, "You don't want to miss the show."

"Oh god," Jackson moaned when the men had left, "Oh god, oh god, oh god."

"Charlie," Brennan breathed as her eyes focused on the prone bodies of their guide and his daughter. Each had a single gunshot wound to the forehead; they had been executed without another thought.

While she hadn't been the one to pull the trigger, Brennan still felt dirty, like their blood was all over her hands. Charlie and Tessa had been good people, Dr. Kent as well, but they had been killed because of her. No matter how many ways her head worked to rationalise it, their deaths were on her and the weight of it suddenly sat heavily on her chest. It took several moments for her to realise that the short gasping breaths she could hear were coming from herself and she could feel herself starting to panic as it became harder and harder to draw in oxygen.

"Dr. Brennan," her name and a scuffling noise bought her attention to Daisy who had managed to wiggle herself a little closer to the chair she was bound to, "Dr. Brennan," the younger woman said again calmly but with enough authority to command her attention.

"It's going to be okay," Daisy said, "But you have to calm down or you're going to irritate your broken ribs and they might puncture a lung."

The rational side of Brennan's brain understood what her grad student was saying to her but panic and guilt had already taken a harsh hold of her and Daisy's words weren't getting through. The younger woman obviously noticed this as she spoke again, the serious nature of her tone, so different to her usually bubbly nature that it made Brennan focus on her again.

"Just concentrate on me," Daisy said, "Breathe with me."

The young anthropologist took over exaggerated slow breaths, quietly urging her mentor to do the same.

"That's it," Daisy said as Brennan's breathing began to calm down, "You're doing great."

Brennan concentrated on nothing but her breathing and eventually she was inhaling an exhaling in sync with Daisy. The room was silent spare their breathing as if no one wanted to upset the false tranquillity that seemed to have settled over the room.

"I'm sorry," Brennan said eventually, when she was able to form words again, although to who exactly she was apologising to at that point she wasn't sure.

Shuffling sounds drew her attention to the back of the room where the two closest to Charlie and Tessa moved away from the bodies. She didn't blame them; she worked around death everyday but in this room the mere presence of it was stifling. Never in her life had Brennan felt so helpless and despair clawed desperately at her insides. While she usually mocked and admonished Booth for his over protective qualities she secretly cherished that she could always trust in him to look after her. Not once when she had been buried alive did she doubt that Booth would stop looking until he found her. This time was different. There was no Booth, in fact there was nobody to even notice that their group had gone missing, and that was what maybe scared her the most.

Suddenly she felt like she was fifteen again and left to fend for herself after being abandoned by her parents and brother. She had learnt quickly as a teenager to be tough and she would be damned if she let her younger self down by wallowing in despair.

"We need to try and get our hands free," she said, "We'll have no chance fighting back if we're bound."

"You want us to fight back?" the British grad student said incredulously, "Are you insane?"

"It's better than just lying here and waiting to get picked off one by one," Dr. Andrews said already rolling over so that his back was to his grad student's, "We must try to undo each other's restraints," he said, "And we must do it quickly because we don't know when they'll be coming back."

As the other's shuffled so they were back to back, Brennan tried to pull on her own restraints. The extra strain on her broken ribs made her vision waver but after a few calming breaths she grit her teeth against the pain and twisted her arms to try and use the hook they were slung up on to break through the rope. She could already feel the skin there being rubbed raw, making the already painful process that much harder.

She gave up struggling when the fire in her chest became too much and slumped back against the chair as much as her restraints would allow. She tried to get her mind to concentrate on scenarios in which they could orchestrate an escape but found it hard to think when each breath made her eyes water. Instead she settled on the others, making sure her vision didn't wander to where she knew the two bodies of their guides lay.

"Dr. Brennan?" Daisy, who lay closest to her and partnerless with the uneven numbers left on the floor. She too would have to hope one of the others could get themselves free before she had a chance of escaping her restraints.

"Yes Miss Wick," Brennan replied trying to muster up what she hoped would be a reassuring smile.

"I'm worried about your ribs," the younger woman said frowning, "Your breathing is noticeably laboured."

"Don't worry about me," Brennan said, a sudden flood of affection filling her at her grad student's concern, "My breathing is not laboured enough to indicate that I have punctured a lung and I am not coughing up blood so for the moment I am fine."

"There's something else," Daisy said, "And if it works we might have a better chance of getting out of here."

The others who had heard the exchange stopped moving and those that were facing her looked at Daisy expectantly.

"What is it Miss Wick?" Brennan asked patiently.

"I have my cell phone," Daisy all but whispered as if she expected their kidnappers to burst through the door at any moment.

"And you only thought to tell us this now!" Dr. Andrews exploded, "Dr. Kent, Charlie and Tessa are dead and the others could be as well for all we know and you've just been lying there watching it happen with your god damned cell phone sitting pretty in your pocket."

"I forgot I had it," Daisy said tearfully, "Everything happened so quickly and I only felt it then when I rolled onto my stomach to get nearer to Dr. Brennan."

Dr. Andrews muttered something under his breath about Americans and Brennan felt something protective spark in her chest as he verbally attacked Daisy.

"Perhaps instead of wasting your breath shouting and quite possibly alerting our kidnappers of our situation you should instead be thankful that Miss Wick was clever enough to conceal her cell phone through this whole ordeal," Brennan hissed at him, her eyes blazing, "Considering it very may well be because of her that we get out of here with our lives."

He had the decency to look ashamed and mumbled an apology to Daisy who sniffed her thanks.

"A cell phone is still no good to us if we don't have the use of our hands," Jackson said.

"We must try harder to free our hands, "Dr. Satou from Japan said, "The sun is starting to come up and our kidnappers could return at any time."

"They won't return in the day light," Brennan said as a thought suddenly clicked over in her head, "Their operation works on creating fear of the unknown. They want their victims to remain nameless so their families will never learn their fate, making the emotional trauma worse as they face the endless possibilities over the fate of their loved ones. Day light is too revealing. They won't come while it's still light."

She must have sounded convincing because the others nodded and began to work feverishly at trying to undo their restraints. With the prospect of Daisy's cell phone leading them to safety their spirits had lifted considerably and the vigour in which they struggled was impressive.

Brennan could only hope that her deductions about their kidnappers operation was correct and she hadn't just given them false hope. Although maybe hope was all that mattered, false or not, the terror in her stomach was being replaced with a warmth that seemed to spread through her every limb and she would gladly cling to that feeling to the very end.

**A/N: Chapter four done and dusted. Let me know how you think the story is progressing. **


	5. Chapter 5

Temperance Brennan had always considered herself extremely intelligent. Her brain worked faster and at a higher level than most people an so logically she could explain how time was measured. She could process periods of time into the exact number of minutes, seconds and milliseconds faster than the blink of an eye. Logically she knew that there were sixty seconds in a minute and sixty minutes in an hour but for some reason, beyond her logic time seemed to be moving too quickly and too slowly at the same time.

The ropes tied around their wrists were so tight that their fingers were rubbed raw in a matter of minutes as they struggled to use what movement they had to undo each other's restraints. The small room they were held in had no windows so the torturous wait for their captors to return was made worse by having to guess what time of day it was.

"When we get out of here the first thing I'm going to do is give Lancelot a big kiss," Daisy mused into the otherwise silent room.

"I thought you and Sweets were taking a break," Brennan said wincing as she shifted to get a better view of her student.

"I've been doing some thinking," Daisy said, "And why wait. I love him and I know he loves me, despite him telling me he couldn't wait for me to return, but he gave me a ring and that means something, right?"

Growing up Brennan hadn't had many friends. Especially after her parents left and she was moved from foster home to foster home she was forced to change schools frequently and her peers had always found it hard to relate to her. They hadn't understood the way her mind rationalised things and had turned their misunderstanding into hurtful words that had alienated her even further. When it came to social relationships she tended to not rely on her own 'gut feeling' as Booth would put it. She was always so grateful she had Angela in her life to steer her in the right direction and while the artist always asked for her opinion on social matters she usually did so in such a way that she ended up answering her own question while still making her best friend feel a part of the process.

She wasn't one people usually went to for advice on relationships and she found herself floundering to answer the younger woman. Booth would tell her that in a situation like the one they were in that even if she didn't believe it she should tell Daisy what she wanted to hear as it would allow her to keep hope alive in an otherwise desperate circumstance. Angela would probably agree; ever the hopeless romantic she would be all for a happy reunion for the young couple despite circumstances that would appear dire. Rationally Brennan believed that Sweets' proposal had been the result of a chemical process causing him to believe that he was in love and needed to spend the rest of his life with Daisy. She didn't believe that two people were meant to be; it was, she believed, physically impossible for someone to be in a monogamous relationship for the rest of their lives. Humans desired multiple partners in order to satisfy their biological needs and the more she convinced herself of this fact the easier it was for her to ignore the pang deep in her chest as she spent another night alone.

Her head told her it was okay to be alone but her heart spoke differently. She had never given much precedence to her heart in the past but the longer she spent around Booth the more and more she found herself relying on it. Logically she knew the heart couldn't really control any of her emotions, it was after all just a muscle whose purpose was to pump blood around the body, but her partner lived his life by his heart and his gut and without even realising she had begun to adopt some of his characteristics. Whether it was a result of spending so much time with him or that she was responding to a deeply buried fear that she actually was as cold and unfeeling as people said she wasn't sure but many things weren't as cut and dry as they once had been.

Whether she believed it or not Brennan chose to go with her heart. Daisy was looking at her expectantly and she could not find it in herself to crush the glimmer of hope that sparkled in the younger woman's eye. In all honesty it was quite possible and probable that Sweets could have found another woman, he was a young man after all and they had desires, but one look at her grad student's bound arms and legs and she couldn't bring herself to voice the rational answer to Daisy.

"I'm quite sure that Sweets will be very happy when we return," she said smiling despite the constant ache in her ribs, "Your wedding will be very beautiful."

"You think?," Brennan could hear the happiness in the other woman's voice, "Obviously I haven't really given it that much thought but I was thinking for flowers Daisies would be the obvious choice and I know some people might think that they are a little cliché what with my name being Daisy and all but I just love them, they're so bright and colourful you know..."

"Would you shut up!" the British grad student yelled, her voice echoing off the concrete walls, "We are going to fucking die here and you're blabbering on about your sodding wedding that is not going to happen!"

Looking at their situation objectively Brennan would agree that their chances of surviving this kidnapping were slim to none. Nobody was even aware they had been taken so there was no one coming to their rescue. Their only chance of survival lay in their own hands which were literally tied. The other woman's attack on Daisy seemed to spark something inside her chest that made a protectiveness bubble from deep within.

_Brain and heart Bones, brain and heart._

Booth's voice rang through her head sounding so real that she almost expected to look over and see his deep brown eyes twinkling at her. If she closed her eyes she could picture the way he looked at her and could almost feel the ghosting of his hand against the small of her back. If Booth were there he would jump to the younger woman's defence immediately and she suddenly found herself wanting to make him proud.

"I think you will find that your efforts would be better suited to trying to get out of your restraints then verbally attacking Miss Wick," she said coolly, "If we were to adopt an attitude like yours then we will certainly all be killed. There is no sense in turning on one another if we wish to have any chance of survival and you should keep that in mind the next time you think about speaking about matters you know nothing about."

The British woman muttered something under her breath but didn't say anything further. Daisy whispered a thank you to her but Brennan's mind was already considering another thought. Their kidnappers were ruthless and obviously cared little for their lives. They were only concerned with reaching their objective and didn't care who stood in their way. Brennan couldn't stand the thought of another person dying because of her inability to give their kidnappers what they wanted to hear. Her breath already caught painfully in her chest as her eyes wandered of their own violation to the prone bodies of their guides that lay in the corner of the small room.

The obvious answer would be to give them what they wanted. The only problem with that solution was that it would be a complete lie. She had not revealed to anyone the identities of those she had discovered in the mass grave and had not been lying when she told them as much. She could tell them she had told someone which would placate their need for knowing but who would she say she told and what would be the consequences of that choice? She could be putting someone in unnecessary danger by lying in an attempt to save the lives of the dig team but aside from getting out of their restraints she couldn't see any other way of potentially escaping with their lives.

"Do you think they're going to bring us anything to eat or drink?" one of the archaeologists asked quietly, stopping his work on his partner's bindings momentarily to speak.

"I think it's safe to say we can't assume that they will or won't do anything at this point," Daisy said, "But Dr. Brennan is right, as soon as we get out of these restraints we'll have a better chance at fighting back."

"Guns," the young British student said quietly, "They have guns."

"We will have the element of surprise," Brennan said keeping her voice steady as much as it wanted to waver. She had completely overlooked the fact that their assailants were heavily armed and that thought alone threatened to send her into a wave of misery. She prided herself on relying on facts and that was one she had dangerously overlooked when she encouraged the others to try and break free of their restraints. The blows to her head and her battered ribs were really beginning to take their toll and she resisted the urge to give in to the exhausted sleep her body longed to slip into. The only thing they would have on their side was surprise and she would be damned if she let a few hits to the head stop her from getting everyone to safety.

No one argued with her but there was a sense of despair that seemed to hang heavily in the room as their rope restraints remained tied tightly around their wrists. From the sounds of their infuriated grunts Brennan could surmise that no one had made any headway and she bit back a groan of pain as she shifted too quickly to try and see what they were doing. Daisy was quiet at her feet and she was sure the other woman was lost in thought as she was usually the first one to fill the silence.

"Miss Wick," Brennan said suddenly, needing to break the silence that felt threatening and constricting.

"Dr. Brennan?" Daisy replied, clearing her throat in a way that made Brennan aware that she had been on the verge of tears.

"When we get out of here you should tell Sweets what you told me," she said, "He will enjoy knowing that you love him and I think it would be wasteful should you not express your true feelings to him."

There was an irony in that sentence that did not fail to resonate with her. She had in fact done the very same thing when her partner had asked her to give him a chance and she could not help but wonder if things would have been different had she not been so cowardly. There was a chance that she may not have even taken this trip and Booth might not have been off risking his life in the war torn Middle East. Brennan allowed her mind to wander and a smile quirked at the corner of her lips as she pictured a shirtless Booth bringing her a cup of coffee as she sat at the table in her apartment. The moment was nothing but ordinary and imaginary but still a warmth spread through her at the thought of the unbridled affection obvious in imaginary Booth's eyes as he dropped a quick kiss to her cheek.

"Missed moments," she thought bitterly to herself as the pounding in her head intensified. That was what her life had boiled down to. Her own inability to ignore the fear that clawed intensely at her chest whenever she got close to someone had robbed her of any semblance of happiness or relationship she convinced herself she didn't want or need.

"I think I've got some give," Jackson said a note of triumph fleeting in his tone.

Brennan whipped her head around at the sound of his voice as it penetrated the misery she was beginning to fall into. She forgot in her haste the injuries that she had endured and sucked in a harsh breathe as her side burned enough to bring tears to her eyes. She couldn't stop the small whimper of pain that escaped through her lips as she shut her eyes in an attempt to block out the fire in her chest that made it almost impossible for her to breathe.

"Just breathe slowly," Daisy said from her feet having heard her mentor's sharp intake of breath, "It'll pass if you just try to relax."

Brennan wanted to yell at her that breathing at all was the problem but she was grateful for the younger woman's concern and took her advice anyways. She was able to relax enough so that it didn't feel like hot spikes were being driven into her side every time she inhaled and opened her eyes slowly to shift her gaze to where Jackson was looking up at her sympathetically.

"These ropes definitely feel looser," he told her, smiling slightly as his fingers scraped against the binds of his teacher.

"That is very good news," she told him, smiling earnestly even though tears still threatened to fall.

"Good job mate," Jackson's mentor encouraged him, "Now keep going and get these bloody things off me."

With Jackson's revelation the rest of the team began to work with more gusto and it seemed like the entire atmosphere in the room had changed. There was an electricity and excitement that seemed to buzz through the room as they worked feverishly to escape. Brennan couldn't do anything but wait but she found herself feeling instantly brighter at the prospect of her plan actually coming into formation. When they hadn't immediately been able to loosen their restraints she had begun to doubt that they would actually be able to achieve their goal but with Jackson's excited proclamation a glimmer of hope began to bloom inside of her.

Then suddenly that hope was gone and the silence that had seemed threatening moments ago would have been a welcome relief from the horror that assaulted their ears.

**A/N: I'm going to do that annoying author thing and beg for reviews...so this is me begging.**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: You guys are the best, I shamelessly begged for reviews and you delivered. Thanks so much. I'm glad everyone is enjoying the story so far. We should be getting some Booth action in about two chapters time so I hope you can hold on until then.**

To compartmentalise meant that one literally locks away the 'bad' thoughts or memories in corners of the mind in order to keep the pain associated with such trauma out of consciousness so that a person does not feel overwhelmed by it and therefore can go on functioning to some degree. Brennan often prided herself on her ability to shut off her emotions and concentrate on the facts. She was well aware that it was a coping mechanism she had developed over the years when the trauma of her abandonment threatened to take a hold of her and while Angela and Booth often chided her for the fact that she ran from emotions and pain that she couldn't comprehend she had found it extremely useful and comforting.

Try as she may there was no way she could shut out the horrific sounds filtering into the small room they were being held in. The screams of their co-workers echoed off the walls as they were forced to endure a torture the occupants of the room could only guess the nature of. They had stopped trying to wriggle out of their restraints the moment the screams had started and all stared in open mouthed horror at the door. Earlier their captor had mentioned the possibility of a show and they now knew the sick reality of what he meant.

"What are they doing to them?" Jackson asked his voice trembling as another pain filled scream echoed down the hall.

"We can't possibly know what they're doing to them," Brennan said, "We can't see them to ascertain the torture they are enduring."

"What Dr. Brennan means is that this is all part of their plan to use the unknown as a way to make us fearful," Daisy said interrupting the tirade of outraged protests that had started at Brennan's seemingly heartless comment.

Brennan didn't mean it to sound heartless but her brain often compensated for stress or fear by relying on logic which was frequently construed by others as her being a cold fish. Early on in their partnership even Booth had misread her bluntness but now he was one of the only few who understood that she was often at her most direct when she was hurting the most. Her vision swam with images of her partner and as a woman's scream sounded through the hall she concentrated on trying to think of sounds of him. The way he spoke, the way he laughed, anything that would distract her from the horrors she knew were happening just through the door.

"Keep trying the ropes," Daisy encouraged the rest of them who had been shocked into stillness at the sounds of their colleagues pain, "If we can get them undone while they are still...busy," she audibly choked on the word, "We can use my phone to call for help before anyone realises what has happened."

There it was. That glimmer of hope again that spurred them all to work. Despite the overwhelming odds the group clung to that hope like it was a lifeline.

The heat was stifling in the small room they were being kept in and the salt from the sweat that dripped down her face stung as it ran into the cuts on her cheeks and lips. It had been hours without food and water and Brennan's stomach grumbled noisily in protest as she licked her dry lips. Her joints screamed for relief and her head pounded and she wanted nothing more than to give in to unconsciousness that would be a welcome relief to the horror going on around her but she wanted to stay as alert as possible in case their kidnappers came back so she fought valiantly against the darkness that blurred at the edge of her vision.

"Dr. Brennan once we get our ropes untied and get you out of that chair I'm thinking it would make a pretty effective weapon," Dr. Andrews said breaking the silence.

"I'm quite positive the steel in this chair would cause significant damage if used against someone's maxilla or zygomatic bone," Brennan replied.

"I used to play cricket when I was younger," Jackson piped up, "I'm pretty good at whacking things and I would give my left nut to hit that cocky bastard in the face."

"I don't know what that means," Brennan said eliciting a snort of laughter from Daisy.

"Dr. Brennan, you don't know how good it is to hear you say that," the younger woman said giggling.

"I don't know wha..." Brennan stopped short when the unmistakable sound of a gun shot rang through the room.

"Oh my god," Daisy whispered.

They could hear their colleagues pleading for their lives as more shots rang out until there was silence. Brennan felt the blood drain from her face and her world swam as her brain tried to keep up with what was happening. She didn't allow conjecture in her lab but her brain was already formulating stories with what had happened. Without even seeing she knew that they were dead. It was too much. Everything that was happening was because of her and the gravity of that sunk her into the blackness that had been threatening to take hold of her all day.

He always bought her Chinese food when she was sad. Somehow he thought egg rolls and Kung Pao chicken after midnight made everything better. In reality she knew it was simply his presence that soothed her but she was happy to pretend it was the food. They sat close together on the couch, his arm around her shoulders and her head resting against his. They breathed in sync, their chests rising and falling as one and the tranquillity of the moment was enough to make her consider his theory about magic.

"Booth," she whispered feeling his chin move from where it rested on top of her head.

"Yeah Bones," he said just as quietly.

"Something feels wrong," she said shifting so she could look into his eyes.

"What do you mean?" he asked his chocolate brown eyes crinkling in confusion.

"This feels too right," she said trying to clarify.

Her partner chuckled loudly and pulled her close so he could kiss the top of her head.

"Bones you're a character," he laughed, "How can something be wrong if it feels too right?"

"I would imagine drinking that soda you like so much feels right but in reality it is wearing through your intestinal tract and could possibly lead to a rather painful death," she said matter of factly.

"That's not what you meant is it?" he asked crooking his finger under her chin and tilting it up so she was looking at him again, "What did you mean Bones? Why does this feel wrong?"

"You're not really here," she said confidently, "You're not real."

"Bones, Temperance," he said using the finger still under her chin to pull her face closer to his, "If I wasn't real would I be able to do this?"

His lips were soft and gentle against hers and she moaned as she opened her mouth to grant him access. His tongue caressed hers and she moaned as the kiss deepened. It wasn't the first time they had kissed but it was the first time they hadn't been drunk or acting on the impulses of a romance deprived federal prosecutor.

"Booth," she gasped as she pulled back to take a breath.

"Dr. Brennan," he replied pulling her towards him harshly. She gasped as her head began to ache from where his fingers were pulling at her hair, yanking her head back to expose her neck.

"Booth," she gasped again, "You're hurting me."

"God you're pretty," he growled tightening his grip in her hair, "Pity," he sighed.

"What? Booth? What's going on?" she asked fear gripping her stomach as she tried to pull back from his grasp and look at his face.

"I'm teaching you a lesson Dr. Brennan," he said harshly, "I don't like to be lied to."

"Booth, I don't understand," she cried out as his lips crashed painfully against hers. Gone was the gentle caress of the earlier kiss. This was rough and she gasped as her whole body seemed to come alight with pain.

She was pushed back and her ribs burned in protest. She was disorientated and her eyes blinked hurriedly as she took in her surroundings. Her apartment was gone and in its place was the stark room they were being held in. The events of the last days rushed back at her at once and Brennan gagged when she realised whose mouth had been pressed against hers not moments before. Their captor grinned maliciously down at her licking his lips in glee as he watched the horrified realisation pass over her face.

"Welcome back Dr. Brennan," he grinned, "I wonder who this Booth is you call for so longingly?"

It was cruel that not moments before she had felt safe in Booth's arms and now she was looking into the face of pure evil. Her body swayed in her restraints but she looked back at him with as much defiance as she could muster. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he had gotten to her no matter how embarrassed she was that she had been calling out Booth's name.

"I trust you enjoyed our little show," their captor smiled indicating vaguely for the door, "You know its funny how we all look different on the outside but somehow we all bleed red."

"You sick bastard," Dr. Andrews growled from his spot on the floor, "We've done nothing wrong. Dr. Brennan is telling you the truth," he shouted, "What will it take to get it through that thick skull of yours. If she knew anything she would have told you by now. You can stop this unnecessary death."

"Unnecessary!," their captor roared, "If the stupid bitch would just tell me what she knew then this whole thing could be over," his fist collided with the side of her face and Brennan cried out in pain as her cheek split open and warm blood began to trickle from the wound.

"I didn't tell anyone," Brennan whimpered as he pressed his fist angrily into her side, "I promise I didn't tell," she gasped.

"Don't lie to me!" he roared hitting her again. This time she couldn't control herself and a sob burst from her throat as tears spilled from her eyes. She was sure if he pressed any harder on her side her broken ribs would puncture her lung.

"Stop!" Daisy cried, "Stop it you're hurting her."

"I'd keep my mouth shut if I were you or you'll be next," their captor whirled around to face Daisy.

"Miss Wick," Brennan gasped, her breath coming in short pants, "I'm fine just keep quiet."

"Do what the good Doctor says," the man snarled, "Now in case you didn't realise your friends are dead," he said turning back to face Brennan, "They died because of you," he said almost gleefully, "So I'm going to ask you one more time," he grabbed her chin and leaned in close so she could smell his putrid breath, "Who. Did. You. Tell?"

"Nobody," Brennan whispered, tears choking her, "I didn't tell anybody. Please. I didn't."

"This is getting old quickly," their captor growled, "I suggest you do some thinking because next time I come back I might not be so friendly."

"Take them," he pointed to the British grad student and the archaeologist next to her.

"No, no, please no," the younger woman cried out as she was yanked to her feet, "Please Dr. Brennan do something, please."

Her screams and sobs echoed off the walls as she was dragged from the room, her colleague going quietly beside her. Those left in the room watched on in horror as their co-workers went off to what was more than likely a painful fate.

"You should listen to your friend," their captor said to Brennan, "Do something and this could all stop. Tell me what you know and no one else will have to die."

She could hear someone throwing up as the men left the room but Brennan couldn't concentrate on anything but the roaring in her ears. Everything seemed to spin around her as more and more tallies were added to the body count. Her body felt like it was being stretched and crushed at the same time and she couldn't distinguish one source of pain from the other. She had been violated and she felt dirty, not only from the monster who had stuck his tongue down her throat but because of the blood of those innocent people that felt like it was all over her hands. She knew that no matter how hard she scrubbed she would never feel clean again.

She tried to focus on one corner of the room, if only to give herself something else to think about. In one corner she knew lay the bodies of Charlie and his daughter and she couldn't bear to set eyes on them. This corner seemed safe and inviting and her tired mind seemed to conjure up an image of the one person she longed to see. As his form took shape she knew what she was seeing was impossible but still she couldn't stop the glimmer of hope that sparked inside of her that maybe he was there to rescue her. He smiled warmly at her and she fought to keep her head up. She could hear someone calling her name but she couldn't take her eyes off of him.

The last thing that passed through her lips before she gave into the welcoming darkness was his name.

"Booth."

**A/N: Again I'd love to hear from you. I reward with metaphorical cookies to everyone who presses the little button and sends me a review.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who has sent me through a review. It's always exciting to hear what people are thinking about the story so keep it up. For those of you who have asked we should be seeing Booth in the next chapter.**

**Again I've changed some of the details from Season Six to suit my story.**

This trip had been the chance of a lifetime and Daisy Wick hadn't even thought twice when she was offered a place on the team. The five year plan she had set up above her bathroom mirror was slowly coming into fruition and she couldn't have been more excited. She had already checked off several milestones, including working with Dr. Brennan, and she thought that this would be her chance to cross off be involved in making a major scientific discovery. She had put her relationship with Lance on hold for this trip and at the time she had been able to put it into perspective but now, trapped in this hell hole, she wasn't so sure.

Coming to work with Dr. Brennan had been a dream come true. Their personalities hadn't gelled originally; Brennan's take no nonsense attitude hadn't exactly been welcoming to her own more bubbly personality and it had taken them awhile to find a way to work together. While she was sure her boss still didn't understand her overly positive outlook on life, Brennan had come to respect her and Daisy valued that more than words could express. Like many in the inner Jeffersonian Medico-Legal Lab circle Daisy had been captured by Brennan's strength and thinly veiled vulnerability and had come to care for the older woman deeply.

She had watched as Brennan and Booth circled around one another, dancing around feelings that weren't as well hidden as the two partners may have thought. It was a great frustration to many of their friends that the two of them wouldn't simply put aside their fears and give into the love that swirled behind every glare and simple touch. The romantic in her couldn't help the shiver of excitement at her bosses whisper of his name before she succumbed to unconsciousness but the realist in her ached at the thought that the two of them may never have the opportunity to act on what she felt was fate.

From her position on the floor Daisy couldn't completely get a gauge on her bosses' injuries but she had begun to worry after Brennan fell into unconsciousness for the second time in a couple of hours. She had had to bite back tears when their kidnapper had woken Brennan by kissing her roughly and the older woman had called for Booth, mistakenly taking it for his lips against hers before the horror of reality filtered back into her consciousness. She didn't want to give their captors any more reasons to hurt the already battered anthropologist but they were utterly powerless until they could get their binds undone. Her cell phone pressed painfully into her stomach from where she lay but it was a reassuring pain that kept a glimmer of hope alive within her.

"I've got them," Jackson said quietly and Daisy was sure she had imagined it.

"Are you serious?" she asked twisting so she could see the Australian man.

"Yes," Jackson nodded enthusiastically.

"Good job mate," Dr. Andrews said as he pulled his hands free from the ropes that had been binding them.

Daisy kept one eye on the door as the two men quickly undid the rest of their restraints, taking a moment to clap each other on the back. She couldn't believe they had actually succeeded. The prospect of ever getting out of the restraints had seemed so unrealistic that watching the two men stretching painfully seemed almost like a dream.

"Not my first experience having my hands tied behind my back," the Australian grad student waggled his eyebrows comically.

"That's no way to talk around a lady," his boss admonished him as they both stood slowly and painfully, stretching the muscles that had cramped long ago, "You get Daisy out of her ropes and I'll start on Dr. Brennan," he said, his joking manner disappearing as he spurred into action.

"Daisy keep an eye on the door," he told her, "If you see any movement say something immediately," he told her as Jackson knelt down beside her and began to work feverishly on her restraints.

She nodded but hoped it wouldn't come to that. She still wasn't sure what they could do if their captors came back armed with the guns they brandished so cavalierly every time they stepped into the room. Their biggest hope for survival lay in her pants pocket and she was well aware that even that was a long shot.

"God," Dr. Andrews muttered as he stooped in front of the slumped woman tied to the chair, "What has he done to you?"

"Be careful not to jostle her too much," Daisy said quietly flexing her ankles which were now free, "Any wrong move and her broken ribs could puncture her lungs," she knew the man working to free her mentor was well aware of the consequences of Brennan's injuries but it helped her to keep her growing panic from bubbling over the surface if she recounted facts. In this way she and her blue eyed boss were very similar.

"Who should we call?" Jackson asked as he worked on the ropes binding Daisy's hands together, "The local police? Or someone back home?"

"I don't know how much battery I have left," Daisy said regretfully, "I think I know who to call. They'll have access to equipment that can maybe help pinpoint where we are and they'll be able to get in contact with the local police."

"Jackson once you have Daisy's hands free I'm going to need to two of you to come and help me get Dr. Brennan down," Dr. Andrews said, "We're going to have to move her slowly so we don't aggravate any of her injuries."

"What are we going to do once we get her down?" Jackson asked his fingers digging into Daisy's skin painfully as he worked the tight knot of her restraints.

"Daisy will make her call," Dr. Andrews said, "Then she will tend to Dr. Brennan's injuries as best as she can while you and I search this room to find anything we can use as weapons."

"Do we wait until they come back or do we try and get out?" Jackson asked, "Assumable they don't have anyone just outside the door or they would've been in here by now."

"I don't know," Dr. Andrews sighed, "We have no idea how many men there are here, or the layout of where we're being held. It would be suicide to go out there blind."

"Its suicide to stay here as well," Jackson said.

"Once I make my call someone will be on the way with help," Daisy supplied, sighing in relief as the ropes finally fell away from her wrists, "It might be smarter if we stay and fight if we have to. If we move we might have no chance of ever being found."

Jackson helped her to her feet and her body groaned in protest. After being bound for so long her muscles were stiff and twinged painfully as blood rushed back to them.

"We'll think about that after we get Dr. Brennan down," Dr. Andrews said, "The way that she has been tied means that all her weight is basically on her shoulders. Once I undo these ropes," he indicated the ones holding her hands above her head, "Her body will fall. Jackson if you stand in front of her and Daisy you behind you should be able to slow down the fall and it won't jostle her too much. Once she's stabilised we'll move her off the chair."

As he loosed the ropes slung over the hook Brennan's arms flopped limply to her side and her body began to slump to the side. Jackson moved forward to stop her body from slipping off the chair completely and Daisy looked to the door as Brennan groaned in pain. She was certain that they would be caught at any second but luck appeared to be on their side for the first time lately and the door remained closed. Jackson managed to slide his arms under Brennan's legs and shoulders and lifted her carefully so she was resting against his chest. Daisy was able to get her first glance at the true extent of the injuries her boss had suffered and she put a hand to her mouth as her eyes drunk in the bruises and contusions that were splashed across the older woman's pale face.

"Take her to the corner," Dr. Andrews pointed, "The further from the door we get her the longer it will take for them to get to her if they come back."

They all spared sad glances to the bodies of Charlie and Tessa that lay on the other side of the room as the three walked slowly to the other corner. There was no time to grieve for those who had lost their lives. Time wasted on grief now would only serve to distract them from getting out.

Dr. Andrews motioned for her to sit down and she fished her cell phone out of her pocket as she did so. The two men lowered Dr. Brennan down until her head was resting in Daisy's lap.

"We'll wrap her ribs the best we can," Dr. Andrews said stripped off his shirt and starting to rip it at the seams, "Make your call."

Daisy's hands trembled as she scrolled through her phone book. She was tempted to call Lance but wasn't sure if he would even answer her call. With the way they had left things she couldn't risk him not picking up at this stage. She knew it was early in the morning there but she just hoped that her call would be answered.

The Medico-Legal Lab at the Jeffersonian Institute in Washington DC was quiet except for the taping of a keyboard. The hallways were empty save for a couple of security guards who wandered aimlessly counting down the early morning hours until their shifts were up. Dr. Camille Saroyan was hunched over her computer finishing a report from the pile of paper work that had somehow managed to build up on her over the last couple of months.

Michelle was away on a school Biology trip and Cam hadn't been able to face going back to her place alone so she had stayed late at the office trying to get a handle on the growing pile. Staying late at the office had turned into staying all night at the office and the forensic pathologist ran her hands over her tired eyes in frustration. With all of her team off on trips around the world Cam had been working with the interns left behind to get through as many bodies stored in Limbo as they could before everyone returned. The work wasn't nearly as exciting as the cases they consulted on with the FBI and Cam's services were required mainly to okay tests rather than examining bodies as these didn't have any flesh or organs she was used to working with and she was quickly becoming bored.

She found that she missed 'her people' and their presence around the lab. Hodgin's frequent cry of King of the Lab never ceased to make her chuckle and Angela's call of 'Sweetie' as she admonished her best friend about some social protocol she hadn't followed was not something Cam had even realised she'd picked up on but surprisingly she found that she missed it. She hadn't gotten off to the best start with the forensic anthropologist but she found they had come to a mutual respect and she had grown to view the younger woman with a fondness she couldn't quite explain. Brennan had been abandoned as a teenager and had struggled to survive in the foster system and Cam hurt when she thought that Michelle may have faced the same fate. In some ways the forensic anthropologist was still a lost little girl who needed the guidance of those around her to make sense of the things she didn't understand and while she didn't make it easy for anyone to get close enough to give that guidance once you were in you were there to stay.

Cam smiled as she pictured the younger woman staring in confusion at her partner after he made a reference to a pop culture reference she obviously didn't get. The two of them argued with more passion than most people made love. She had known for a long time how Seeley felt about his partner and while in the past it may have caused her some pain she soon realised that whatever she and Booth may have shared was long since over and he only had eyes for one woman.

The phone on her desk rang shrilly and Cam jumped as it shattered the silence that had long since settled over the lab. She grabbed for it in a hurry worried that it was the school calling about something going wrong with Michelle and cursed as her paper work fell to the floor as her hands grabbed for the phone.

"This is Dr. Saroyan," she said clearing her throat.

"Dr. Saroyan it's Daisy," a hushed voice crackled on the other end of the line.

"Daisy? Daisy Wick? How are you? How are things going with the dig? How is Dr. Brennan? Is she driving the locals mad?" Cam chuckled at the thought of the strong willed anthropologist ordering the locals around like she did the FBI workers who dared disturb her remains.

"Dr. Saroyan I can't talk long my battery doesn't have much life left," Daisy rushed, "We've been kidnapped and they've already killed most of our team. They are Muslim radicals leftover from the war in Indonesia; they don't want us identifying the bodies and won't let us go until Dr. Brennan tells them who she's told about who we've uncovered. She hasn't told anyone but they don't believe her and they're killing people until she gives in. They've beaten her pretty badly. I don't know where they've taken us but I was hoping you could trace my call or something. We don't have any weapons and they've got guns so I'm not sure what they're going to do if they come back and find that we're all untied. I have to go so I can save some battery on my phone. Please help us Dr. Saroyan. Please. I don't want to die and I don't know what else they're going to do to Dr. Brennan."

Cam stared at the phone in horror as the dial tone sounded. She didn't know what to do or who to call first. There was so much racing through her mind that she hardly remembered to breathe. That definitely wasn't what she had been expecting when she picked up the phone.

Her first instinct was to call Booth only to remember halfway through dialling his number that he was off in Afghanistan. Her next thought was to call Angela and have her come in to try and start trying to trace Daisy's phone call to track their location only to remember that the artist was off in Paris with Hodgins. Her fingers danced frantically over the numbers as she dialled the number for the Hoover. She raced through her story with the desk jockey who answered the phone and demanded to be put in contact with the Deputy Director and tapped her fingers anxiously against the desk as she waited to be patched through.

"Dr. Saroyan I assume there is a reason you are calling me so early in the morning," Andrew Hacker's voice growled from the other end of the line, "I'm not due at the office for another three hours and was enjoying a rare sleep in."

"I'm sorry," Cam rushed, "But there's a situation with Dr. Brennan and Miss Wick in Maluku and I'm going to need your help."


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: I'm borrowing a few lines from **_**The Parts in the Sum of the Whole **_**in this chapter so all credits go to the Bones team. **

**Thanks again for everyone who has sent me through a review. You guys are the best.**

Things moved quickly once the FBI got involved. Cam had managed to get a call to Angela and Hodgins, knowing the artist would want to know what was going on with her best friend. A hysterical Angela had promised they would be on the next flight to the States. After her initial deliberation Cam had put a call through to the satellite number Booth had left before he headed off into the combat zone and had left a message after being informed that Booth was off base and wouldn't be able to be contacted for a couple of days.

The FBI technicians had managed to use the signal from Daisy's phone to pinpoint a location within a ten mile radius and Hacker had been in contact with the local police. While the FBI were in transit the local police would search the area and locate where Brennan's team were being held and do surveillance until the FBI arrived.

"I'm going too," Cam said as she strode purposely into Hacker's office. The Deputy Director was on the phone barking out orders and held his hand up to her to stop her from continuing.

"I'm afraid I can't allow that," he said after ending his call, "The team we're sending in have been trained specially for these types of operations and we can't have anything that may distract them from their mission."

"Those are my people," Cam growled angrily, "And I am no civilian. I was a cop for ten years and I know my way around a firearm."

"Dr. Saroyan I appreciate your concern for your people but my people are the best at what they do and they will do their best to get Dr. Brennan and Miss Wick out of there," Hacker said.

"Andrew I respect your team but if their situation is really as bad as Daisy made it out to be then they're going to want to see a familiar face when they get pulled out of there," Cam argued, "Do this for Dr. Brennan."

Cam knew the Deputy Director still had a place in his heart for the forensic anthropologist and while she knew it was low appealing to his emotional side she would just about do anything at that point to be involved in the rescue. There was so much truth to the sentiment about there being more than one type of family.

"Fine," Hacker sighed scrubbing a hand over his face, "But you don't go in. You wait in the transport until the team gets them out and you help from there."

"Thank you," Cam sighed, "When do we go?"

"Plane leaves in thirty minutes."

* * *

Booth knew the work he was doing was for the good of his country but there were times when he resented the fact that he had such a sense of duty. He was leading a training exercise twenty miles from base and was quickly getting sick of the dust that seemed to form a thick coat over everything and everyone. He swore he had dust in places that made the good Catholic boy in him blush.

There would have been a time when he would never have agreed to come back and serve. His work with the FBI kept him busy and he had felt like he was slowly erasing the sins of his past by catching murderers but something had changed and he wasn't as satisfied with the work he was doing anymore. He told himself that it was his patriotic duty to accept the offer and come out to train soldiers but when he wasn't lying to himself he knew that wasn't the real reason.

Temperance Brennan. Dr. Brennan. Brennan. Bren. Dr. B. Bones. Dr. Bones. Tempe.

He had never met a woman that went by so many names and none of those were even her real given name. To him she would always be Bones. Dr. Brennan if he was introducing her, Temperance if it was really serious but deep down she was always his Bones. Except she wasn't. His. He had poured his heart out to her, laid himself on the line and she had turned him down.

He understood her fears. He understood she had been damaged by years of abandonment and found it hard to rely on anybody but herself. He understood her reluctance to trust. He understood she hid behind facts and science to make it easier to deal with emotions she wasn't equipped to handle. He understood all this but he couldn't understand why she wouldn't give him a chance.

He thought he had worked his way through her walls. He thought she trusted him. He thought he had proved to her enough times that he cared for her deeply. He thought he wasn't alone in his feelings.

He told himself time and time again when he was lying in bed at night, the cold desert air blowing through the barracks that he wasn't running away. He was here to serve his country and that was all.

He almost growled out loud when Sweets' voice sounded in his head.

_One of you has to have the courage to break this stalemate. You it's gotta be you. Because you're the gambler. For once, make that work for you._

He'd taken the chance and look how well it had turned out. He was off in the deserts of Afghanistan and Bones was up to her elbows in skeletons on some island. He was really going to have to kick the psychologist's ass one of these days. If he hadn't taken Sweets' advice then everything would've been fine. Everything between he and Bones would be normal and they wouldn't have had to run off to other sides of the globe to escape one another.

In his heart he knew that this wasn't true. Everything was not fine. Ever since his coma dream they hadn't been the same. He had found it harder and harder to hide his feelings for her and something in her gaze had told him that she knew. It was after all the book she had been reading to him while he was unconscious that had sparked the dream in the first place. Her 'not based on real life' characters had been happy and in love and it had forced him to face some feelings within himself.

_You thought you were protecting me. But you're the one who needs protecting. From me. I don't have your kind of open heart. _

Her clear blue eyes had been filled with tears as she basically told him she didn't think she was good enough for him. He had wanted to protest but his heart was shattering inside his chest. Not only for him but for the beautiful woman who had stood in front of him, not realising just how incredible she really was.

_I am not a gambler. I'm a scientist. I can't change. I don't know how... I don't know how._

He wanted to argue with her. Show her all the ways that she had already changed. She had such a huge heart which she never gave herself credit for. He knew though, could see it in her tear filled eyes that if he pushed any harder then she would be gone for good. So, he had accepted her, told her they could still work together even though he knew it would be torture.

So here he was, traipsing through the desert back towards base with ten young soldiers and trying not to think about the last time he saw her. It had been one of the hardest things he's ever had to do. To just turn and walk away after she had looked at him with such turmoil in her cerulean eyes. Hidden within the depths he had seen regret and fear and longing and he had been sure for a moment that she was going to ask him to stay but then she had turned and he'd done the same and that had been the last time they had spoken.

She had asked him not to be a hero and then she was gone.

He missed her. He'd told her he was going to move on, but it was hard to do so surrounded by war. He still had a long way to go before his service was up but he wanted to go home. He wanted the familiarity of his day to day life, he wanted to get up in the morning and know he was going to see her, even if it was just a fleeting visit. He wanted to speak to his son for more than five minutes at a time. He wanted to get a drink with his partner after they solve a case. He wanted another chance.

The pack on his back suddenly feels heavier as the base appears on the horizon. he catches himself as he trips over a stone and glares playfully at his comrades who snicker at his clumsiness.

"You trippin' over your own feet again Sarge?" a young blonde haired soldier, Chandler laughs at him.

"I'm not above making you drop and give me twenty Chandler," Booth barks back but his eyes twinkle letting the younger man know he is joking.

"What's the first thing you're gonna do when we get back to base?" another recruit Higgins asked.

"Shower," Booth answered immediately, "This dust is really starting to piss me off."

"I'm gonna call the missus," Chandler winked, "Time to get me some lovin'."

"Chandler no one wants to hear that," Higgins said screwing up his nose.

"How bout you Sarge?" Chandler asked, "You gonna call your missus?"

"No she's...I don't have a missus," Booth sighed sadly.

"That's too bad," Higgins said, "But don't worry, there's someone out there for ya."

Booth breathed a sigh of relief when they finally stepped foot on the base. It felt like they had been gone for weeks and he really couldn't wait to get a hot shower. Sweat had mixed with the dust and his body felt sticky and it was only adding to his bad mood.

"Booth!" a soldier called when he rounded the corner, heading towards the shower block.

"What's up Perkins?" Booth asked shrugging his pack off his shoulders.

"There's a message for you," Perkins told him, "Said it was important. You're meant to report to Comms immediately."

"Okay," Booth sighed looking forlornly at the shower block, "Thanks Perkins."

He saluted his superiors as he entered the Communications structure and headed over towards the Communications Officer who was beckoning him over.

"Booth," he greeted him.

"Collins," Booth replied, "What's going on? Perkins said it was important."

"We got a message for you from back home," Collins said.

Booth could feel his face pale. A message from home usually meant something terrible had happened.

"Is it my son?" he croaked.

"No, no, your son is fine," Collins reassured him, "I'll let you listen yourself," he handed Booth a pair of headphones that were connected to their recording system.

"Booth its Cam," Booth frowned as the pathologist's voice filled his years, "There's a situation in Maluku. Dr. Brennan and Daisy have been kidnapped by a militant group. Don't worry I'm going with the FBI to go and get them, I-I just...maybe you should think about coming home. It sounds like a pretty rough situation and she's going to need someone. She's going to need you. Just. You should come home Booth."

That was it. The end of the message and Booth's heart felt like it was going to burst from his chest. She had been kidnapped. She was in trouble. His Bones.

"We've already organised a transport back to DC," Collins told him but Booth was hearing it as though he was underwater. All he could hear was Cam's voice saying over and over that Bones had been kidnapped.

_She's going to need you._

"I need to get to Maluku," he croaked. If anyone was going to help get her out it was going to be him.

"We can't get you there," Collins said sadly, "The best we can do on such short notice is DC. We have a courier plane leaving this evening anyway so we were able to get you on that."

"She's in trouble," Booth hissed his fists clenched at his side, "I need to get to Maluku."

"I'm really sorry man," Collins said going to touch Booth on his shoulder but realising at the last second that maybe that wouldn't be a great idea, "Look, you're lucky we had this plane going to DC today otherwise we might not have been able to get you out for another week."

"When does it leave," Booth finally ground out between gritted teeth.

"Eighteen hundred hours," Collins told him, "You have about forty minutes to pack your stuff and then Edwards is driving you to the air strip."

"Pack my stuff?" Booth asked.

"You've been given an honourable discharge," Collins told him, "Captain Clarkson said you wouldn't be returning after this."

Clarkson had served with Booth back when he was a Sniper but while Booth had chosen a career in the FBI after being a Ranger; Clarkson had stayed on and had quickly risen up the ranks. The two had been close and Booth was instantly grateful that the other man knew him so well. He knew there was no way he would be able to drag himself away from Brennan once he set eyes on him again, especially not after the ordeal she had been through.

"Thanks," Booth said after he had regained his senses, "It's been great. You stay safe hey, and don't listen too closely when Chandler calls his girlfriend later on," he said slapping the man on the back.

"Chandler is not even the worst," Collins said shaking Booth's hand, "You go and help your lady now."

Booth considered correcting him but it would be time wasted so he headed quickly back to the ranks, grabbing his heavy pack as he went.

His team had congregated in front of the shower block, obviously waiting for his return after watching him race off after Perkins earlier.

"What's going on Sarge?" Chandler asked.

"I've got to return to DC," Booth said brusquely, "My partner has been involved in an incident in Maluku and I've got to get home to help her."

"So you're leaving?" Higgins asked.

"I have to," Booth said. He felt like he was deserting them but this was Bones, and as much as he'd needed his distance from her after she'd broken his heart, he needed to be by her side. Cam had said that she was going to need him but in reality he needed her just as much. Now that he knew she was in trouble he needed to see her, touch her just to reiterate to himself that she was okay.

A nagging voice in the back of his head told him that she might not be. Cam had said they were sending in a team to get her out so she wasn't safe just yet. He had faith in his co-workers. He had seen what the specialist extraction teams could pull off so he was confident if she was still alive that they would get her out.

She was still alive. She couldn't not be because he didn't know what he would do if she wasn't. He simply couldn't entertain the possibility that she wouldn't make it through this. Suddenly the thought of losing her made him all the more willing to put his heart on the line again. She had turned him down once and he had let her, telling her that he had to move on. The truth was that he didn't want to. He knew she was the one for him. He loved her like he had never loved anyone before and if he gave up on that he was basically giving up on everything he had ever preached to her about love.

He was going to prove to her that they could work if it was the last thing he did.

'It's his woman," Chandler winked, "Don't worry Sarge we can look after ourselves."

"You won't be on your own," Booth reassured them, "Captain Clarkson will employ someone to take my place."

"Don't worry about us Sarge," Chandler said, "Just go and help your woman."

"Thanks boys," Booth said taking a moment to shake their hands, "Take care of yourselves."

It seemed like in the blink of an eye he was standing opposite the huge air carrier that would take him back to the States. He was shifting nervously from foot to foot, his things sitting on the ground next to him. The engines on the plane were loud and it was hard to hear anything but he had been in enough air carriers to know the drill. The flight back was not going to be comfortable. He nodded at Edwards as he was ushered across the air strip to the loading area of the plane.

It was going to be a long fifteen hours.

**A/N: Booth's in the game now! Next chapter we'll be going back to see how Brennan and Daisy are faring.**

**So gentle readers I would be honoured if you would drop me a line and let me know what your thoughts are on the story so far. I can see how many are reading every week and it would be awesome if a few more of you pressed the shiny little button and fed your starving author. **


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Thank you to all my wonderful reviewers! Sorry for posting this on Tuesday I had computer issues so don't be too angry with me!**

* * *

Brennan was aware of a dull ache in her chest as she fought through the fogginess that clouded her brain. She could vaguely hear the steady drip, drip, drip of water and wondered if her tap was leaking again. She made a note to give Booth a call a get him in to fix her plumbing. He had regained his plumbing skills after briefly forgetting them after his coma.

_Fixing things is what makes us men Bones._

That's what he'd told her. She of course had told him that it was in fact the Y chromosome that made him a male but he had remained adamant that fixing things was the key.

Her head felt heavy and her stomach lurched almost like she had drunk a little bit too much the night before. Brennan was sure Angela was to blame. Her best friend's glug glug woo hoo attitude had gotten her into trouble before. She grimaced as she opened her eyes, expecting the harsh morning light to send pain shooting through her head and gasped out loud when she was met with an overwhelming darkness.

There was no light. No windows. Nothing. Complete darkness.

Her heart beat wildly in her chest and Brennan could feel herself starting to hyperventilate as fear took a hold of her. Ever since she had been buried alive by the Gravedigger she had become terrified of the dark. Irrational as she thought it was she simply couldn't handle being completely in the dark. The digital clock radio on her night stand always cast a soft blue glow through her bedroom so when she woke in the night there was some light filtering through the room and it was easier to quell the panic that always welled up inside of her at the thought of being trapped again.

She could almost feel the dirt falling in on her as she opened the car window, naively believing she could get out. She had stayed strong for Hodgins, but after he had passed out she had allowed herself time to panic. She had cried, and sucked in air even though logically her brain was telling her to try and keep calm; that panicking would only diminish the oxygen quicker. Eventually she had managed to get herself under control by wracking her brain and recounting all the facts she could think of until she had worked out a plan of how they could get a text message out to Booth.

Brennan was sure Sweets would have some psychological reason for her reactions to darkness but all she knew was that she was afraid. She was always afraid that she was going to open her eyes and be in that car again.

"Dr. Brennan?" a soft feminine voice asked.

That was wrong. She and Hodgins were the only ones in the car.

"Who's there?" she called back, her voice raspy.

"It's me Daisy, Miss Wick. Dr. Brennan are you alright?" Daisy asked. The younger woman's voice trembled with what sounded like relief.

"What happened?" Brennan asked squeezing her eyes shut. If she closed her eyes then she could pretend that everything was dark because she wished it to be. Somehow it was less frightening that way.

"After you passed out we got the ropes untied," Daisy started, "I used my phone and called Cam and told her what was going on. We were worried about your ribs so we tried to wrap them using Jackson's shirt and I guess we sort of lost ourselves and forgot to keep watch. They came in and saw us. I thought they were going to shoot us then on the spot but he just started screaming at us in Indonesian. They took Jackson and Dr. Andrews somewhere else, I don't know what's happened to them or if they're even still..." Daisy trailed off taking a gulping breath, "They took us into this room, I tried to stop them but you were still unconscious and I knew I wouldn't be able to fight them and make sure you were okay so I went with them. They've tied us up like you were tied up in the other room and h-he made me watch as he hit you."

"I-I don't remember," Brennan rasped.

"You woke up a couple of times but I don't think you were ever fully aware of what was going on around you. Y-You just sounded like you were in pain," Daisy said quietly, sniffling softly.

It was as if Daisy's words awoke something inside of her and her whole body seemed to ache at once. She could feel blood, sticky on the side of her face from a head wound that hadn't been there before. Her shoulders screamed with the effort of supporting her body weight and the fire in her chest from her broken ribs seemed to have intensified, made worse by her panicked breathing.

"You got through to Cam?" Brennan ground out, pushing down the fear that threatened to swallow her whole.

"I told her what had happened and told her to try and track the phone's signal to get a location on us," Daisy said, "I didn't really give her much time to talk because I didn't know how long my battery was going to last."

"Did they get your phone?" Brennan asked.

"No," Daisy said, "So they don't know that someone's coming for us."

"Someone's coming," Brennan said into the darkened room, trying to reiterate it to herself.

"Someone's coming," Daisy said and even though she couldn't see the other woman Brennan could hear the fierce determination in her voice.

The two women lapsed into silence, the only sound the steady dripping of water somewhere in the room. To Brennan who still had her eyes clenched shut it sounded like a clock ticking. Daisy had said that someone was coming to get them but the steady sound of the water hitting the floor boomed through her head like a counter, counting down to their deaths.

"You need to talk to me," Brennan gasped, shifting in her restraints to try in vain to take some weight off of her aching shoulders.

"What?" Daisy asked, her question bouncing off the walls.

"You need to keep talking to me. I'm finding myself having an intense physiological reaction to being in this room. My heart rate is significantly faster than usual and I'm having a little trouble breathing," Brennan said, trying desperately to ground herself in the science that usually kept her calm.

"Okay, okay," Daisy said, "Don't worry the dark really started to freak me out at first as well but I've kept myself busy by singing TV theme songs out loud. Did you ever watch Full House? It was my favourite show when I was growing up. Uncle Jesse was so dreamy you know and I always was kind of jealous of DJ."

She let Daisy's voice wash over her, not so much concentrating on what the younger woman was saying but using it to anchor herself in the her and now and not get lost in the traumatic memories that tried to suck her under.

"Daisy," Brennan said suddenly interrupting the other woman as she rambled on about various television shows that Brennan herself had never seen.

"You called me Daisy," the younger woman said, surprise colouring her tone.

"It seemed fitting considering the circumstances," Brennan said, "Did...I...did they hurt you in any way?"

"Not really," Daisy said after a minute, "I think they wanted to hurt me by making me watch them hurt you."

"I'm sorry," Brennan said.

"It's not your fault," Daisy said shifting in her restraints, "I'll be happy not to have my arms hung up over my head though. Dr. Saroyan can't get here fast enough."

"How long was I unconscious for?" Brennan asked after a minute.

"I can't say for sure but I'm going to guess it's been over twenty-four hours when you were out on and off," Daisy surmised, "They fed me some stale bread and some water and I tried to get them to leave some for you but he didn't seem so happy about doing that."

"I would imagine not," Brennan nodded into the darkness, "It seems making me suffer is giving him some sense of perverse pleasure."

"How are your ribs?" Daisy asked seriously.

"Quite painful," Brennan sighed, there was really no sense in lying at this point, "But I'm confident that any added trauma hasn't perforated any organs."

"Small joys then huh," Daisy chuckled, "Dr. Brennan, would you mind if I asked you a personal question?"

"I guess not, given our current situation and what you have done to try and keep me safe I think that would warrant me giving what Booth would call 'a bit of myself'."

"Okay, good. Stop me if I'm being too presumptuous or anything. Lance says I have a tendency to pry without meaning to so if I make you uncomfortable you can tell me to shut up but you and Agent Booth, is...did something happen between you two? It's just you-you said his name the other day and you thought it was him when-well you thought it was him when that pig was shoving his tongue down your throat so I thought that maybe...," Daisy trailed off.

For a few minutes only the sounds of the steady dripping of water filled the room. Brennan felt her throat constricting as the smiling face of her partner appeared behind her closed eyes. If she concentrated hard enough she could almost feel his hand in the small of her back where it habitually resided.

"I made a mistake," she said finally, taking so long that Daisy was sure she wasn't going to get an answer.

"What do you mean?" the younger anthropologist prodded.

"Before we left Booth and I had a conversation," Brennan said her voice taking on a faraway quality as she was transported back to that night, "We discussed, well Booth he...Angela informs me that Booth and I have long been denying certain feelings we have towards one another. As I'm sure you're aware Booth has quite a conventional view on love, one which I myself do not really share. He proposed that we give a relationship a try and he kissed me. I must admit I have on the odd occasion thought about what a relationship with Booth might be like but in the end I realised that with our differing views on love I couldn't give him what he wanted, or needed."

"Oh Dr. Brennan," Daisy said sadly.

"I have however been doing some thinking since we have been here and I've come to realise that I am quite sad that I was too frightened to give it a try," Brennan said, "I think perhaps the possibility of never seeing him again has made me come to the conclusion that I do in fact share the same sentiments he expressed to me."

"You will see him again," Daisy asserted, "And you'll get to tell him everything you never got to say."

"You can't possibly know that," Brennan said shaking her head and wincing as her ribs twinged painfully.

"Like you I believe in facts and science but sometimes Dr. Brennan I've learnt you have to have a little faith," Daisy said, "Lance taught me that. Oh Lance!"

"What about him?"

"He is going to be so mad that I got to hear what you said about Agent Booth and the feelings before he did," Daisy exclaimed.

"I trust you would be able to recount it accurately to him," Brennan said grimacing as her stomach seemed to turn in on itself. She realised it had been a couple of days since she had anything to eat or drink and it was starting to make her feel weak. She had ignored it earlier as she had been more focused on the gnawing panic of being enclosed by darkness but now her head felt light and she was sure if she had been standing on her feet she would have sunk to her knees.

"Daisy," she said, "I am beginning to feel the effects of having little sustenance in my body so I am going to try and conserve energy by not speaking. I would of course appreciate it if you kept talking as the dripping water and lack of light is still making me nervous and I need to keep my heart rate and breathing as normal as possible."

"Of course," Daisy said, trying to keep her own panic from showing. She only hoped their rescuers got there soon.

* * *

After spending the better part of two days travelling, Cam was relieved when they finally rendezvoused with the local Indonesian police who had located the facility in which Brennan and her team had been held.

Hacker's team were every bit as impressive as he had promised and she watched in awe as they prepared themselves to begin the rescue. The local police had passed on what intel they had gathered on the facility's layout and the men who held her colleagues inside and while it wasn't much to go on the team leader assured her that they would get them out safely.

Cam itched to go in with them, the cop inside of her missing the thrill of the chase but she knew it wasn't in the best interests of anyone involved for her to distract the men from their mission.

She grabbed the arm of the team leader's arm as he braced himself to lead his men into battle.

"Those are my people in there," she told him seriously, "I don't think I have to tell you that I expect them out safely."

"Don't worry Dr. Saroyan," he nodded at her, "If they're in there we'll get them out."

"You better," she said, "They'll be hell to pay if you don't, and I don't mean just from me."

He nodded at her again before signalling his men. They were entering under the cover of darkness and Cam watched as they melted into the night. She scrubbed a hand over her eyes as she walked back over to the military issued jeep they had travelled across the island in.

She had no idea what shape her people would be in when they got out and she hated to think that they may not make it out alive. She busied herself checking over the medical supplies that rested on the floor of the vehicle and nodded at a local policeman who walked past her, vigilantly keeping the perimeter they had set up surrounding the FBI vehicles. She was restless and the humid jungle air was doing nothing to ease her worries. Sighing again she walked around to the front of the jeep and hopped up to sit on the bonnet, looking out into the dark jungle, looking for anything that would signal the team's return.

Her hands strung worriedly in her lap she fidgeted worriedly. Cam wasn't a very patient person, she always needed to be doing something or working towards a goal so this was one of the hardest things she'd ever had to do.

Because now all she could do was wait.

**A/N: I'm tossing up whether or not I want to write the whole rescue or if I want to keep it in Cam's perspective for awhile and go from there. What do you guys think? What would you rather? **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Thank you, thank you, thank you to all my amazing reviewers, especially those who sent me long messages. Your feedback is amazing and I love you all for it.**

Booth had never felt uncomfortable in his own home. It was his man cave and he was extremely proud that he had saved enough money to fit it out with everything a man could want or need. Sure it would be nice if there was room for a pool table in the corner and a slightly bigger kitchen but all in all he was very happy with his living space.

That was all true until now. Now the walls felt like they were closing in around him and the usually composed FBI agent was pacing around like a caged animal. He had never felt so helpless in his entire life. Here he was stuck in his apartment while somewhere halfway across the globe his partner was being rescued by some other FBI schmuck. He had already called Cam numerous times but the pathologist wasn't answering her phone and that only made him more anxious. Booth just wanted to know if Brennan was okay; that she was out safe and on her way back to DC. If he couldn't be a part of the rescue he thought he was at least worth the courtesy of knowing what was going on.

Swearing he whipped his phone from his pocket, cursing himself for not thinking of it earlier. His fingers racing over the keypad he resumed his pacing as the phone rang in his ear.

"This is Hacker," his boss said sounding harried.

"Sir it's Booth," Booth said resisting the urge to yell at his boss, "I'm just wondering if you have any news about the progress in Maluku?"

"I'm sorry Booth I haven't heard anything," Hacker said sighing tiredly, "I got word that they had landed and again when they reached the location but haven't heard anything since."

"You're the fucking Deputy Director!" Booth exploded, "They report to you! How can you not have heard anything?"

"That's right. I am the boss," Hacker replied just as angrily, "And it would do you some good to remember that. Look Booth," he said lowering his voice, "I know how important Temperance is to you and I know it must be killing you that you're stuck here while someone else is over there playing the hero but I promise you I'm doing the best that I can and as soon as I hear anything I'll let you know."

Booth's whole body deflated as he sunk onto the couch. He scrubbed his hands furiously over his eyes as he took in his boss' words.

"I'm sorry sir," he said eventually, "I know you're doing your best, it's just, its Bones."

"I know Booth, believe it or not she means a lot to both of us," Hacker said, "Look I really have to go but I promise as soon as I hear anything you'll be the first to know."

"Thank you," Booth said resisting the urge to throw his phone across the room as soon as he hung up.

After a moment of sitting in silence he had to get out. He couldn't sit still and just wait. Booth grabbed his cell phone and his keys and headed out the door. If he couldn't be there to rescue her he could at least do something that would help her when she got home.

Daisy listened worriedly as her boss conversed with someone only she could see. After the trauma Dr. Brennan's body had undergone over the last couple of days and the lack of food and water she knew it was only normal for the other woman to experience hallucinations but it still made her stomach sick with dread.

Daisy could recount perfectly the scientific explanations for what was going on inside Dr. Brennan's body but somehow when faced with the reality those weren't quite as comforting as they should have been. She wasn't even sure why they were still alive. She had been positive when the men had come in and found them out of their restraints that they were going to kill them on the spot. Watching them take Jackson and Dr. Andrews had been scary enough, both men had struggled against their kidnappers but Daisy had caught the look in their eyes; they were resigning themselves to death.

She had to stay strong, if only for Dr. Brennan who had suffered much more than she herself had. The darkness was starting to get to her, suffocating and squeezing and if Daisy had been on her own she probably would've started crying a long time ago. She couldn't though. She wouldn't give in to the tears that she knew started to fall probably would never stop. Dr. Saroyan would have someone coming for them.

"I knew you would come back," Dr. Brennan said, her voice echoing off the walls and penetrating the dark room, "I knew you wouldn't just abandon us. Russ told me you weren't coming back but I never stopped believing you would."

When Dr. Brennan had first started rambling into the darkness Daisy had tried to keep the other woman in the present but had long since given up. Instead she had to listen to her boss spill her darkest secrets to people who weren't really there. Daisy had learnt much more about Temperance Brennan in the last hour or so than she had in all the time she had been working for her. She probably knew things that would upset Brennan greatly if she knew anyone had found about.

Strangely it made her feel closer to the woman she had shared this experience with. She had a vague knowledge of Dr. Brennan's past but hearing her cry into the darkness she felt like she had an insight that not many, if anyone shared into what really went on. Not all of Brennan's ramblings had been happy and Daisy had had to bit her tongue when the other woman whimpered as some unseen man from her past threatened her.

"I'm glad you're here Mom," Brennan whispered into the darkness and Daisy bit back the sob that threatened to escape.

She hoped their rescue team was coming soon because she didn't know how much longer her boss could hang on.

Subconsciously Brennan knew something wasn't right. A little part of her brain was telling her that her mother was not alive and yet there she stood in front of her, looking very much alive. Logically she knew this couldn't be real but the abandoned fifteen year old girl inside of her who longed to see her mother again seemed to have dug her claws into the delusion and wasn't letting go. If she was going to die then spending her last few hours with the one person she had longed her entire life to see again certainly seemed the way to go.

"Have I told you how proud your father and I are of you?" Christine Brennan asked smiling kindly at her daughter.

"Yes, when I last saw Dad he told me as such," Brennan replied, "Although I believe at the time he was referring to my purchasing a new television, but I believe the sentiment applies."

"No sweetheart it's not the same," her mother said gently, "We're proud of what you've become. You're beautiful, smart, caring. You have a wonderful job and are surrounded by people who obviously care for you very much. You are everything a mother could hope for her child to become."

"Thank you," Brennan whispered feeling choked up, "I miss you."

"I miss you too sweetheart but you have people in this world you love you so I'm not worried that you'll ever be alone," Christine said.

"But I am alone," Brennan said quietly, "And for so long that was my choice and I was happy about it but now..."

"Now you're wondering if you're missing out on something," her mother nodded knowingly.

"Yes," Brennan nodded, "That is correct."

"Tempe darling you're not going to end up alone," Christine said smiling.

"You can't possibly know that," Brennan interjected.

"I can, call it mother's intuition," Christine said.

"There is no such thing. The myth that mother's have any sort of intuition is in fact an evolutionary process that occurs when a woman's body releases catecholamine as a result of stress for their offspring."

"Call it whatever you want I know that everything is going to work out for the best," her mother said.

"I would refute that but it's becoming apparent to me that the affects of going without food or water are beginning to take their toll on my body," Brennan said, "I'm feeling quite faint."

"If you're feeling unwell then just close your eyes for a little bit," Christine said, the concern on her face making Brennan feel like she was a little girl again, "I'll be here when you wake up."

"Dr. Brennan?" Daisy Wick's concerned voice floated through her subconscious, "You should try to stay awake. I know it's easier to give into unconsciousness but it would be better if you tried not to pass out."

"It's alright Daisy," Brennan said already feeling the world begin to float away, "My mother is going to take care of me."

"Dr. Brennan your mother isn't really here," Daisy said, "You're hallucinating. Its dark remember. If your mother really was in the room you wouldn't be able to see her."

"No-she's here," Brennan said her mind fuzzy with confusion, "She left me but then she came back. Daisy, I-I think I would know if I could see my own mother."

"She's here as a result of a lack of..." Daisy's voice disappeared behind the roaring in her ears and Brennan felt her eye lids droop as her head swam.

Everything came as a series of flashes. Brennan could never tell if she was awake or not. She could hear gunfire and men shouting and Daisy yelling for someone. She could feel pain and other times a blissful nothingness.

"We're in here," she could vaguely hear Daisy call and she forced her eyes open.

"Everything's going to be okay Bones," his familiar brown eyes seemed to warm her from the inside, "I've got you."

She felt someone lifting her into their arms as her limbs burned after being released from their restraints. Her head pounded and ribs screamed in protest with every step the person took but she couldn't find it within herself to yell out for him to stop.

"Is there anyone else inside?" was the last thing she heard before giving into the pain.

The sounds of the jungle may have been soothing at one point in time but for Camille Saroyan every cricket's chirp sounded like nails on a chalkboard. For the agitated pathologist time seemed to be standing still. Her eyes never strayed from the break in the trees where the FBI team had disappeared but her mind wandered as she tried to stop herself from exploding in frustration. Sitting still had never been her strong point.

She had long ago given up on hearing footsteps as every snap of a twig had sent her jumping off the hood of the vehicle she sat upon causing the local policemen to look at her strangely. She blinked as she caught movement in the distance and her whole body tensed in case they weren't the FBI returning. Catching sight of the familiar Kevlar vests she jumped off the vehicle straining to see. Cam wasn't a religious woman but in that moment she prayed that she would see the familiar alabaster skin of Temperance Brennan. She 'd be woe if she had to be the one to explain to Booth that the forensic anthropologist hadn't made it out of Indonesia alive.

"Oh thank God," she exclaimed, feet moving of their own accord as Daisy Wick appeared through the thick trees, flanked on either side by armed FBI agents. Daisy appeared scratched and dirty but no worse for wear. Cam's eyes moved frantically, searching for any sign of Dr. Brennan and nearly cried out in delight when she spotted the next figures moving through the trees.

The last few FBI agents emerged from the undergrowth, a prone form held securely in the arms of the team leader. Even from the distance Cam recognised her colleague and was already moving to the back of the Jeep to grab the medical equipment she had been provided.

"How is she?" she asked as the team approached.

"Unresponsive since we left the scene," the agent replied.

"She's had nothing to eat or drink since we were captured and has multiple lacerations and suspected broken ribs," Daisy supplied standing protectively near the man who held her boss.

"Dr. Saroyan do you think you can treat her if we are on the move?" the team leader asked, "We are under strict orders to retrieve and move out as quick as possible."

"Daisy if you get in the back of this Jeep with me you'll have to assist," Cam said nodding to the agent, "The sooner we're back on a plane to DC the better."

Daisy jumped in the back of the vehicle and helped the agents manoeuvre an unresponsive Dr. Brennan into the middle seat. The agents around them were moving quickly to eradicate their presence from the area. Some were speaking hurriedly to the policemen surrounding their vehicles while others were packing equipment back into the empty SUVs.

"We wrapped her ribs the best we could which a T-Shirt," Daisy told Cam as the pathologist jumped into the car.

"In that case we'll keep that in place until we reach the air strip," Cam replied reaching across the anthropologist to put her seatbelt in place, "I'm going to pass you this gauze and if you wouldn't mind holding it to the laceration on the side of her head."

The SUV roared to life as they were joined by the team leader and another agent.

"Are we alright to move out?" he called back to her.

"Let's get going," Cam called back, already rooting around in her medical supplies to find what she needed, "I'd have liked to get an IV going to start treating her dehydration," she yelled over the roar of the engine to Daisy, "See if you can wake her up while I give her a shot of antibiotics to treat any infection her wounds may have caused."

While Daisy tried to rouse her boss Cam held the woman's arm still in the jostling SUV, delivering the shot the best she could under the circumstances. When Brennan groaned and her eyes fluttered Cam and Daisy worked quickly to get water down the groggy woman's throat. She was only mildly awake for under a minute but Cam was satisfied that they had got some fluids into her and shifted her body as Dr. Brennan's unconscious form flopped against hers. The younger woman's skin felt hot and clammy against her own and Cam laid the back of her hand against her forehead, frowning at the fevered skin she touched.

"She's running a fever," she said to Daisy who was starting to look a little shell shocked, "Probably as a result of the lack of fluids."

"I can't believe we got out," Daisy whispered her face paling.

"Don't pass out on me now Miss Wick," Cam called worriedly shoving a granola bar into the other woman's hands, "I need you here."

With Dr. Brennan's head heavy on her shoulder and the Indonesian jungle racing past outside the window Cam allowed herself a brief sigh of relief. She couldn't really believe it either.

They had got them out.

**A/N: I plan on revisiting the rescue a bit later in the story in a bit more detail but I hope that was enough to suffice at the moment. **


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thank you to everyone who sent me a review. I really appreciate you all taking the time to send me through your thoughts on the story. A special thanks to ****Beththeartist whose review made me feel all gooey on the inside. **

When their late night take out dinners became an almost daily occurrence Booth and Brennan had swapped apartment keys. While Brennan had taken to using her key to Booth's apartment on a regular basis, sometimes at inopportune times, he still knocked and waited for her to let him in. Being let into her personal space was a privilege and he wanted to let her maintain some control over who she let in. Whenever he knocked she always answered the door with the same exasperated expression, bemoaning him for not just using his key. He would smile and make a quip about preferring to see her smiling face as she let him in to which she would always scowl before ushering him in. It meant more to him that she let him in every time rather than being able to simply let himself in. This way it had been her choice to let him in and he counted himself lucky that she did so every time.

Booth realised he had been standing outside the door to her apartment with his key resting in the lock for a couple of minutes. It felt wrong to use his key for the first time when she wasn't even there to celebrate the fact that he had done it. Her place looked the same as it always did. Everything was in place, the only hit that someone hadn't been home for awhile the faint stuffy smell from having the windows perpetually closed. It felt wrong to be in her place without her there but Booth was determined to have it ready for when she returned. He dumped the grocery bags he held in his hands on her kitchen bench and set about letting light and air into the apartment.

His cell phone was practically attached to his hand and he checked it constantly to make sure he had reception. He had spent hours in the organic grocery store picking up food he thought she would eat, making a note to tease her about the exorbitant prices for what looked like normal fruit and vegetables. He missed their arguments. She challenged him and frustrated him beyond belief but he always had such fun arguing with her that he sometimes provoked her on purpose simply to see the fire spark behind her eyes when she argued back.

There wasn't much to do. Brennan kept her place clean and had obviously straightened it out before she left for Indonesia but Booth felt like he had to do something. He couldn't be there for the actual rescuing but doing things about her place made him feel like he was helping somehow. After running his hands aimlessly over the surface of her bookcases he nodded in the resolution that he would do something to keep his hands busy.

Booth had been in her apartment more than most but there were still some areas he had never been. Her bedroom was one of them. He hesitated outside the open door, feeling like he was invading her privacy simply by contemplating going inside. Steeling his resolve he stepped through, noting instantly how the room seemed to reflect all the best aspects of his partner. It was simply decorated, a few pieces from her travels sitting on wooden shelves that had been bolted to the brick walls. The queen sized bed in the middle of the room was covered in a green and brown bedspread that complemented the dark wooden floors. The bedside tables were surprisingly cluttered, seeming to overflow with books and journals that she had been in the process of reading before leaving for her trip. To some the room may have looked a little cold and impersonal but Booth could see beyond the simplicity to the little details that were just so Bones.

He knew that each artefact that sat on the wooden shelves would have been carefully selected and would hold significant meaning to the woman who had chosen them. He knew that the green and brown colours of her bedspread would have been selected specifically for reasons he was sure she could tie back into a scientific explanation about their affects on the REM cycle. It was the books, all with bookmarks stuck in them that really caught his eye. They were so un-Brennan like that one could be mistaken in assuming that they weren't hers. _The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Lord of the Rings _and _Hatchet_ all sat proudly amongst the anthropology journals resting on her bedside tables. They were all books Booth realised, that he had mentioned reading to her, explaining incredulously after she hadn't gotten one of his references. It was these sorts of actions that made him want to shake some sense into her when she claimed she didn't have an open heart and these sorts of actions which of course only made Booth love her more.

The time away had done nothing to abate the feelings he had for her. Standing there in her bedroom, surrounded by her things and the scent of her perfume Booth was instantly glad of the fact. He didn't ever want to be rid of the feelings she made him feel and he would damn well spend the rest of his days trying to convince her that they should be together because as stubborn as she was, he was Seeley Booth, and Seeley Booth fought for what was right. The world just wouldn't be right until they were together.

His cell phone broke through his determined musings and he nearly dropped it in his haste to answer.

"Booth," he said hurriedly, cursing himself for not checking the caller-ID. It could easily be a wrong number or some telemarketer trying to sell him something. He could have gotten his hopes up for nothing.

"Booth it's Hacker," his boss said on the other end of the line and Booth sunk down onto her bed in relief. He had never believed in the saying 'no news is good news.'

"Did they get her?" Booth asked his voice sounding strangled.

"They got her," Hacker affirmed.

Booth thought he was going to cry. There on the phone with his boss he thought he was going to burst into tears and sob like a little girl. He was instantly grateful that his boss seemed to realise he needed time to get himself together so he kept talking.

"I got news from Dr. Saroyan and the team leader that they raided the facility Dr. Brennan was being held in. After initial resistance from the kidnappers was detained they were able to extract Dr. Brennan and Daisy Wick from the compound. I'm told by Dr. Saroyan that Dr. Brennan is suffering from the effects of dehydration as well as several lacerations and contusions and suspected broken ribs. Daisy Wick is in better condition and I'm told that Dr. Brennan is likely to make a full recovery from her injuries. Dr. Saroyan was adamant that I tell you that part," Hacker said, "She called you a worrier. At first I thought she said warrior and I failed to see the connection but after a second I caught on to what she meant and as a fellow worrier I knew you'd be happy to hear that Temperance is going to be okay."

"Thank you sir," Booth breathed, "Thank you for letting me know."

"Of course," Hacker said companionably.

"When are they getting back to DC? I want to be at the airport when they arrive."

"I have to go, got another call but I'll send the flight details to your phone," Hacker said, "Tell Temperance I'm glad she's alright and we'll give her all the time she needs to be ready to work again."

"I will, and thanks again sir, you don't know how much," Booth said.

"I think I do," Hacker said before clicking off.

No more than a minute later Booth's phone beeped with the message containing the flight details. He only had a few hours before their flight would be arriving and his anticipation at seeing her again suddenly hit him and if he hadn't already been sitting he was sure it would have bought him to his knees. She was injured and he ground his teeth at the thought of the men who had hurt her. He wished he could've gotten his hands on them.

There was no time for thoughts of revenge. His priorities were her. If she was injured she would be even more adamant that she didn't need anyone to take care of her. Damn frustrating woman that she was, she only became more stubborn when her own welfare was in the mix. With thoughts of seeing her again he stripped her bed and headed to the small laundry room that adjoined her bathroom. Her homecoming would be difficult enough and it would be the little things that would make all the difference and there was nothing felt better than hopping into a bed with clean sheets.

He only had to get through a few short hours and then he would see her again.

* * *

The Indonesian air strip wasn't more than a strip of dirt cut out amongst the tall trees on either side but the FBI plane stood proudly amongst the dense jungle. Their return journey was much quicker than the original one as there was no need for secrecy and they knew exactly where they were going. Cam was glad for this fact as the sooner they got to the plane the sooner she would have access to better medical equipment. Brennan's injuries weren't life threatening and for that she was glad, but the younger woman was clearly suffering from dehydration and the resulting unconsciousness made it difficult to get sufficient fluids into her.

The FBI team moved swiftly and smoothly getting their things loaded onto the plane and Cam and Daisy followed behind as one of the men carefully carried Brennan from the Jeep into the medical portion of the plane. The small room contained two beds and all the necessary equipment to transport the critically injured and it would more than satisfy their needs.

"Dr. Saroyan we'll need you to remain seated until after take-off," the team leader said as Brennan was strapped onto one of the beds.

"I'd like to get an IV started before we go," Cam replied staring directly into the man's eyes.

"We'll need you to move quickly 'Mam," he nodded before heading back into the plane's seating quarters.

Doing as she was told Cam soon had an IV inserted into Brennan's hand, relaxing for the first time since they had landed in Indonesia.

"Those fluids should start to kick in soon," she told Daisy as she strapped herself into a seat next to the younger woman.

"That's good," Daisy nodded.

"How are you holding up?" Cam asked as the plane began the bumpy taxi down the air strip.

"I've been better," Daisy said honestly, "I didn't think we would make it out of there."

"You're okay and safe now," Cam reiterated, "You did everything you could and it's because of you that you and Dr. Brennan made it out alive."

"We were the only ones though," Daisy said looking to the other woman for confirmation, "They didn't find anyone else."

"No other survivors," Cam said sadly.

She had never been the touchy feely type. In fact on several occasions she had threatened to cut limbs off those who felt the need to invade her personal space and hug her for one reason or another but the mother in her took over as soon as Daisy's face crumpled and she pulled her into a hug, wrapping her arms around the younger woman's body the best her seatbelt would allow.

"They were so nice," Daisy cried, "They didn't deserve to die."

"It was a horrible thing," Cam agreed, "A horrible, horrible thing and those people didn't deserve to die but you shouldn't feel bad that you survived. It's going to take some time but you must remember that you are surrounded by people who care for you and will help you get through this. You are a survivor Miss Wick and for that I am extremely proud of you."

This only seemed to make Daisy cry harder and Cam soothed her the best she could. She was comfortable with autopsies and a wry sense of humour and maybe a nice glass of chardonnay. Looking after Michelle had made her a little better but this was still uncharted territory for the forensic pathologist.

"Dr. Saroyan," she looked up as the team leader stuck his head in the back room, "We are at cruising altitude now. You are free to move around the cabin."

"Thank you," Cam nodded, "And thank you for all that you have done."

"You're welcome," he dipped his head, "Anything you need just come and see me."

"I'm going to clean Dr. Brennan's wounds and see what I can do about stitching the one on her forehead," Cam said to Daisy once he had left, "Would it make you feel better if you assisted me or would you like to lie down for awhile?"

"I think I'd like to lie down," Daisy sniffed, "A shower would be nice as well," she indicated her dirty clothes.

"Unfortunately I don't think this plane comes equipped with one of those," Cam said, "Could I interest you in a nice sponge bath."

"Dr. Saroyan did you just make a joke?" Daisy asked settling herself in the bed that stood parallel to the one Brennan lay on.

"I have been known to have quite the sense of humour Miss Wick," Cam winked, "I'd like to start an IV for you as well," she held up her hand as Daisy started to protest, "I know you said you'd had some sustenance but I'd feel more comfortable knowing you were getting some fluids straight into your bloodstream."

Daisy dropped off to sleep soon after Cam inserted the IV and Cam stopped and took a moment to breathe. She couldn't even begin to comprehend what these two women had gone through in the past few days or what they were likely to have to deal with in the coming weeks and months. She knew their physical wounds would heal but the emotional ones would take longer.

Moving over to kneel by Dr. Brennan's bed she used antiseptic to clean the wounds on the anthropologist's face. The younger woman's skin still felt warm and clammy but her colour appeared to be returning as her body greedily accepted the fluids flowing from the IV line. She worked quickly to dress the smaller lacerations before returning to the worst on Brennan's forehead. Keeping an eye on the other woman's face for any sign that she was waking she quickly numbed the area. Cam was no plastic surgeon but she was fairly skilled at stitching wounds and was certain that Brennan would only have a small scare that would likely fade with time. Once she was done she covered the wound and lifted the other woman's shirt enough so she could get a look at her ribs.

She used scissors to remove the shirt that had been crudely wrapped around Brennan's torso to provide some support and gasped at the bruising she saw there. The woman's pale skin was littered with contusions of various shapes and sizes and cam knew just by looking that it would be some time before Brennan could breathe without some degree of pain. Running her fingers expertly down her sides she could determine that at least three of Brennan's ribs were broken although without an X-Ray she wouldn't be able to tell to what extent.

Brennan shifted on the bed and Cam removed her hands quickly, not wanting to startle the other woman anymore than was necessary.

"Dr. Brennan, it's Dr. Saroyan can you hear me?" she asked watching on as Brennan struggled to open her eyes.

"Booth," the younger woman murmured lifting her arm off the bed and stretching towards the sound of Cam's voice.

"Not Booth," Cam said sympathetically taking the other woman's hand in her own, "Its Cam," she said, "I need you to open your eyes for me okay. I know you're in pain but I need to check a few things before I can give you anything for that."

"Cam?" Brennan mumbled her eyes opening slowly, "Wha-what's going on?"

"It's okay," Cam said, "You're okay, we got you out of that place. We're on a plane back to DC."

"I don't understand," Brennan said trying to sit up but groaning in pain at the pressure it put on her ribs.

"Don't try and sit up," Cam said, "You've got some broken ribs. I'm going to give you some painkillers that should help you get some proper rest but I want do a quick neurological test before I do that."

"Daisy!" Brennan said tensing, "Where's Daisy?"

"It's okay she's over there, see," Cam said pointing to the other bed, "She's just sleeping."

Brennan's body relaxed and Cam checked her responses to light and touch as quickly as she could. There didn't seem to be any neurological damage after all the blows to the head the other woman had obviously received and for that Cam was glad.

"I'm going to give you something for the pain now," Cam said inserting another needle into the IV, "It's going to make you drowsy so don't fight it okay."

"We're on a plane to DC?" Brennan asked as Cam pushed the drug into her system.

"Everyone is coming home," Cam nodded, "Booth will be there when we get home," she said answering Brennan's unvoiced question.

"Okay," Brennan sighed her eyelids fluttering closed as the pain killers started to take effect, "Cam," she said forcing her eyes open, "I hope this doesn't make you think any less of me."

"Of course not Dr. Brennan," Cam told her.

"Good," Brennan nodded her eyes slipping closed again.

Cam watched her for any signs that she was going to speak again but the drugs seemed to have taken over. She watched for a second as Brennan's chest rose and fell with each steady breath that she took.

It seemed like everything was over, they had rescued Dr. Brennan and Daisy and were now on their way safely back home.

"Why does this feel like just the beginning?"

**A/N: We will FINALLY have our reunion in the next chapter. Thanks so much everyone who is keeping up with the story. As always all reviews are greatly appreciated. **


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Sorry for the delayed update. wouldn't let me update yesterday for some reason. And finally we get to that much anticipated reunion between our two favourite B's but will it go how we all hoped that it would? Well you'll have to read on to find out.**

As it turned out washing and drying Brennan's sheets didn't take nearly as long as Booth would've hoped and after pacing around her apartment for twenty minutes he gave up being patient and headed back down to where he had parked his car. He fiddled with the radio for a few minutes letting the engine run but nothing seemed to fit the mood he was in so he switched it off angrily before peeling out of the apartment block's parking lot.

"Son of a bitch!" he cursed after having to slam on the brakes to avoid being hit by a tiny Red Mini Cooper that was screeching into the parking lot he had just vacated, winding down his window he yelled "Hey jackass how about you try staying in your lane!"

"Maybe I wouldn't have to if your gas guzzling, O Zone destroying hunk of metal wasn't taking up the entire road," the other driver yelled out his window.

"Look pal – Hodgins? What the hell are you doing here?" Booth asked peering out of his window at the angry eyed entomologist who was glaring back at him.

"Cam called us, said Brennan was in trouble so we came back as soon as we can – ugh," he grunted as his wife leaned over him from the passenger seat and stuck her head out the window.

"Booth! Have you heard anything? We've been trying to get into contact with Cam but she's not answering her phone. Is she okay? Did they get Bren out?" Angela asked her voice taking on a nearly hysterical edge.

"They got her out," Booth said reassuring the anthropologist's best friend, "Both her and Daisy are on their way back to DC. Their flight gets in in a couple of hours. I was uh, just going to head over to the airport and wait."

"Wait!" Angela scrambled back over her husband and jumped out the passenger side door.

"Angie! What are you doing?" Hodgins asked sticking his head out his window as his wife scrambled around the front of the car.

"I'm going to the airport with Booth," Angela said, "Bren's gonna want to see a friendly face and to be honest I need to see her with my own eyes so I know she's okay."

"Okay hold on just let me park the car and I'll come too," Hodgins said putting the car back in gear.

"No – wait!" Booth said as Angela hopped up into the passenger seat of his SUV, "No offense Hodgins but I don't think you should come as well. It's going to be pretty overwhelming for Bones as it is and we don't want to overcrowd her."

Hodgins looked disappointed for a moment but eventually nodded his head in agreement.

"Tell Dr. B I'm glad she made it home safely," he said, "Angie, will I see you at home later?"

"I don't know," Angela shrugged leaning over Booth to speak to her husband.

"Hey! Watch the hands," Booth shouted shrinking back against his seat.

"Calm down G-Man," Angela winked, "I'm married now so you have nothing to worry about. Someone should probably stay with Bren but we'll play it by ear as to whether it should be me or studly here," she said to her husband, "I'll call you and let you know," she said blowing him a kiss.

"What do you know?" Angela asked him as soon as they pulled out into the street.

"Not much," Booth sighed, "Cam told Hacker that Bones was injured but that she was going to be okay."

"Injured? Injured how?" Angela asked.

"Cuts, bruises and broken ribs," Booth sighed, "Cam told Hacker that she would make a full recovery."

"Here I was thinking getting away from all the murder and mayhem would be safer," Angela sniffed, "You have to promise me something," she said wiping her eyes and turning to face Booth as much as her seatbelt would allow.

"Name it," Booth said taking his eyes briefly from the road to glance at the artist.

"Don't give up on her," Angela said seriously, "No," she put up her hand to stop him when he started to interrupt, "You and I both know that Bren would never willingly ask for help and she's not going to make it easy for us so I need you to promise me that no matter how hard she fights that you're going to fight back even harder."

"I would never give up on her Ange," Booth protested.

"Maybe not but I know Bren and she's going to shut down and pretend like nothing even happened even though you and I both know that that is so far from the truth it's not even funny. She's going to push you away Booth and she'll make it easier for you to go than for you to stay," Angela said.

"I don't know why you'd think I'd just abandon her Ange," Booth said angrily, his voice rising as his blood boiled at the thought that the artist would think so little of him.

"Don't get defensive Booth," Angela said putting her hands up in mock surrender, "I'm just trying to paint you a picture. I've known Bren a long time, knew her long before you turned up and started winning her over with that charming smile of yours, and I know how much this is going to kill her. She hates to show weakness to anyone so she's going to shut everything down and pretend like nothing's wrong."

"Don't you think I know that?" Booth said incredulously, "I may not have known her for as long as you have but I know her, okay, I know her and I would _never_ give up on her, _never_. I know she's not going to make it easy, I know she doesn't like to ask for help, I know she doesn't like to show any weaknesses, I _know_ all that," he could feel himself getting worked up and words were just flying out of his mouth, "I love her for god sakes, I'm not just going to give up on her if she makes it a little hard for me."

Booth was breathing hard by the time he had finished his rant and his fingers were clenched around the steering wheel. He hadn't even realised the extent to what he had revealed but was seething that Angela had doubted his dedication to the woman they both had claimed as a best friend.

"I wasn't doubting you Booth," the artist said quietly, "I know you care about her, granted it's a little weird to finally hear you say it out loud, but I wasn't doubting your allegiance to her. All I was saying was that this is going to be hard and we're going to have to rely on each other to keep our sanity when Bren is focusing on shutting us out."

"I'm sorry," Booth sighed, "I didn't mean to yell I guess this whole thing is just getting to me. I mean how much can one person go through before it's enough you know. Bones has been through more heartache than anyone should ever have to deal with. It's like blow after blow and she deals with it the only way she knows how and it breaks my heart you know because I feel like every time I make a breakthrough we take one big step back because something happens that shatters all the progress I've made."

"Just imagine if she hadn't had you," Angela said, "You have been so good for her Booth even if it has been a struggle."

"Do you ever wish you could just turn back time?" Booth asked the artist.

"All the time," Angela chuckled, "I'd really like to tell thirteen year old me that permed bangs were not a good idea."

"This whole thing comes down to one moment," Booth said sadly as they turned into the airspace's parking area, "None of this would've happened if I hadn't gone and scared her off by opening my big mouth."

Angela had a vague idea about what had transpired between the partners that fateful night in front of the FBI building. From what she had been able to piece together from the snippets Brennan had shared Booth had bared his soul to the anthropologist and she had turned him down. Brennan had insisted she didn't have feelings for the FBI agent but Angela had seen through the feeble excuses the anthropologist had given for turning him down.

"It would have spilled over somehow," Angela reassured him, "Holding something like that in is always going to end badly, better it be in a way we can help her back from."

"God it makes me sick to think about what could've happened to her over there. I mean we know she's got cuts and bruises and broken ribs but what else? I swear if I'd been over there I would've..."

"I know, you would've gone all Rambo on them but you can't focus on that. You have to focus on Bren and what you can do now, not what you could've done then," Angela said putting her smaller hand over his where it rested on the gear stick.

"When did you get so wise?" Booth asked allowing a small smile to grace his features as he turned to face the artist.

"Honey I've always been wise," Angela smirked, "You've just always only had eyes for the brains of another," she winked.

"Well I'm never going to overlook your brains again," he smiled, "Looks like we've got an hour or so to waste while we wait for their plane, what do you think we should do?"

"Don't think that you and I are not going to talk about the little L bomb you dropped earlier."

* * *

Cam breathed a sigh of relief when they flew over American soil. There was something about knowing they were only a few hours from home that made her muscles start to uncoil. She had been monitoring both Daisy and Brennan who had been sleeping the majority of the trip and was happy that Brennan's fluid levels were back in a suitable range.

Brennan had woken momentarily a few hours earlier but had fallen back to sleep quickly after muttering a few incoherent words. As much as she cared for the younger woman Cam was almost glad that Brennan hadn't woken completely. Their relationship had improved by leaps and bounds since she first took over the Medico-Legal lab at the Jeffersonian but Cam still knew she wasn't the most qualified when it came to navigating Temperance Brennan.

Now that they were flying over the D.C city limits Cam was starting to feel a little anxious. All her energy over the past couple of days had been spent on finding Brennan and Daisy and now that they were nearly home she was apprehensive. She had no idea how Brennan and Daisy would recover from their kidnapping and how this would affect the work they did at the lab. Beyond that Booth was one of her best friends and she knew Brennan's kidnapping would have an effect on him. The man prided himself on being able to look after the ones he cared about and she just knew he would find a way to turn this into being his fault.

"Dr. Saroyan it's time to prepare for landing," the FBI team leader stuck his head in their compartment.

"Okay, thanks again," Cam said moving over to where Daisy lay shaking her arm softly until the younger woman's eyelids fluttered open, "We're ready to land," she said helping her off the bed and over to their seats.

"I'd like for you to come with Dr. Brennan to George Washington just to get checked over," Cam said to Daisy.

"I'm really fine Dr. Saroyan," Daisy assured her.

"I know you probably are but it would make me feel better if one of the ER doctors checked you over," Cam said, "Consider it part of the job requirements."

"You wouldn't actually fire me for not going with you to the ER would you?" Daisy asked suddenly worried.

"Of course not but sometimes it's fun for me to sound authoritative," Cam shrugged, "Don't tell anyone I said that."

"Your secret is safe with me Dr. Saroyan."

* * *

"This waiting is killing me," Angela groaned for the tenth time in the last hour an hour, "How long does it take for a FBI jet to get from Indonesia to D.C?"

Booth had given up listening to Angela complain about the wait and had instead turned his attention to the sky. Every time a plane flew overhead his heart rate increased and his palms began to sweat as he imagined seeing his partner again. How would she look? Would she want to see him? And why was Sweets waving at him from the car that had just pulled into the parking space next to theirs?

"Sweets?" Booth said jumping out of the car in confusion, "What are you doing here? And what is that ridiculous moustache you have going on there? I didn't know twelve year olds could grow facial hair."

"First off it's understandable you'd be intimidated this is a fairly impressive amount of facial hair I've grown Agent Booth. Secondly I'm here for Daisy; I knew you and Angela would be here to pick up Dr. Brennan and I wanted someone to be here for Daisy," Sweets said as Angela moved around the SUV to join them.

"I thought you two had broken up," Angela said.

"Technically Daisy and I aren't involved romantically anymore but it doesn't mean I can't be here as her friend," Sweets said.

"That's very big of you Sweets," Angela said.

"Thank you Angela," the therapist said smiling, "I also thought it might be productive if someone was here who had a psychological background since we don't know what state of mind Daisy and Dr. Brennan will be in after their ordeal."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa back up a second there pal," Booth said putting his hands up, "Bones doesn't like therapy at the best of times, there's no way I'm letting you anywhere near her with your psychological hat on."

"Agent Booth your hang ups about psychology shouldn't get in the way of someone who could help Dr. Brennan," Sweets said trying to placate the older man, "She's been through a traumatic experience and it would help her to talk to somebody about it."

"She can talk to me," Booth said through gritted teeth, "If she needs anyone to talk to she can talk to me okay, she doesn't need your shrinky brain, she can talk to me, her partner."

"Okay calm down boys," Angela said holding her hands up between them, "This isn't the time for this. We're all going to be there for Brennan and Daisy the best that we can so there's no need to fight about it so stop trying to be all macho about it and suck it up because I think that's their plane."

All three pairs of eyes turned to the runway as the private jet made its final descent. Butterflies erupted in Booths' stomach and he couldn't tell if they were there because of anticipation or nerves. He had been waiting to see her for so long and now that the moment was actually here he found himself second guessing himself. He had been so sure that this time he would tell her how he felt but now that he would actually be seeing her he wasn't so sure. Certainly now wouldn't be the time for him to bare his soul but all his insecurities had suddenly come screaming back. She had taken this trip as an excuse to get away from him. She promised him that it wasn't the reason but they both knew better. What if she didn't want to see him?

"It's going to be okay," Angela whispered to him somehow sensing his unease, "Are we allowed to go meet them at the plane?"

"I've got my badge," Booth said fishing around in his pocket, "That'll get us through security."

"Hacker called ahead and let them know we were coming," Sweets added, "We'll be fine."

"Alright boys let's go then," Angela said taking Booth's hand and pulling him towards the building.

If it wasn't for Angela's hand in his Booth was sure he would've run to the plane looking like a total idiot. The artist squeezed his hand gently and he was suddenly glad for her presence. Angela had an insane skill for just knowing what people were feeling and she was exactly what this situation needed.

"She's going to be glad to see you," Angela said to him, "Even if she doesn't outwardly show it, she'll be glad that you're here."

"Thanks Ange," he smiled letting go of her hand as the door to the plane opened slowly and the FBI team slowly began to file out.

Daisy came out first and Booth heard Sweets take a deep intake of breath from where he stood beside him. While he teased the younger man incessantly he actually had a soft spot in his heart for the psychologist and he knew that there were definitely still feelings there for the young anthropologist.

"She looks okay right? I mean Daisy, she looks okay?" Sweets asked looking at the other two for reassurance.

"She looks good Sweets," Angela reassured him as Sweets moved off to embrace Daisy.

And then there she was.

Her face was bruised and a large white bandage was stuck over her right eyebrow. She held her arms wrapped around her torso an action Booth knew was to support her sore ribs. Cam held her arm but the anthropologist walked like she didn't know the other woman was there. He knew she would have fought Cam, argued that she was fine but the pathologist was just as stubborn and he was glad she had persisted. At first glance she looked battered but with a confident air, looking closer Booth thought she looked moments away from collapsing. He moved towards her like a magnet finding it's matching pole.

"Bones," he breathed. He wanted so badly to pull her to him and hold her in a bone crushing hug but knew her injuries would prevent him from doing so. Instead he settled for wrapping an arm around her waist and was surprised when she momentarily rested her head against his shoulder.

"I didn't know you would be here," she said and he smiled at the sound of her voice.

God he had missed her.

"There's nowhere else I'd rather be."

**A/N: More comprehensive reunion in the next chapter, but YAY she's home. Thank you so much to all the reviews. I appreciate any feedback you can give me so please press the little review button and feed your starving author.**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: I'm sorry this is so late. I've been ridiculously busy with my placement for uni so I haven't had any time to write. I've only got a couple of weeks left so I should be able to update more regularly after that.**

* * *

Someone was speaking to her but she couldn't make out what they were saying. Her brain felt foggy and she gave up trying to decipher what was being said to her and let herself begin to slip back into the sleep her body was screaming out for.

She felt a hand on her shoulder and the nightmare of her situation came flooding back. She tried to move away from the perpetrator but something or someone was holding her limbs in place. Beginning to panic she struggled against the binds that held her, whimpering when the hand touched her shoulder again.

"Please, I didn't tell anyone," she cried, "Please don't, I-I didn't. I swear I didn't."

"Dr. Brennan," a decidedly female voice said, "It's okay you're safe now."

"No," she whimpered her eyes clenched shut, "No, please don't."

It was a cruel joke she decided. They were messing with her to try and break her and she was almost sure that they had succeeded.

"Dr. Brennan I need you to open your eyes," a different female voice said. That voice was familiar, that voice fit her situation so with a forced effort Brennan blinked her eyes open.

The concerned face of Daisy Wick filled her vision and Brennan relaxed, happy for once to have opened her eyes and not be greeted with the snarling face of their kidnappers, or, worse, the permeating blackness that had been the case lately. The younger woman had once annoyed her to the point that she couldn't work with her anymore but now just her presence made her whole body relax. She didn't even want to go into the reasons why.

"It's okay," she realised Daisy was still speaking, "We got out. Dr. Saroyan got us out. We're safe now."

Cam's face swam in her vision and the older woman was smiling softly down at her.

"Cam?" Brennan's exhausted mind was still trying to make sense of what was going on. The last thing she remembered was that room where the darkness seemed to seep through her every pore as she waited for whatever horror came next.

"Welcome home," the pathologist said, her hand hovering just above Brennan's shoulder as if she had been going to touch the other woman but had thought better of it.

"I don't," Brennan said still trying to comprehend what she was hearing and struggling through a still foggy mind.

Cam spoke up as if sensing her struggle, "You were severely dehydrated so I started you on an IV to raise your electrolyte levels. I also gave you a dose of morphine to help with the pain and help you rest. I suspect you have some broken ribs and I had to stitch the wound on your forehead as it was quite deep. I'm confident you don't have any internal bleeding but I'm still taking you to the hospital to get you thoroughly checked, but with plenty of rest and TLC I'm positive you'll make a full recovery."

"Morphine?" Brennan asked as Cam undid the restraints that had kept her still during the flight.

"Yes, it's probably why you're feeling a little groggy still," Cam said warmly, "It should be starting to wear off now and I'm afraid you won't be able to have another dose until after you've been seen at the hospital."

"I don't like painkillers," Brennan said, "I don't like not being able to think straight."

"You might want to keep taking them for a bit," Cam said sympathetically, "You will be in some pain for awhile."

"Where are we?" Brennan asked looking around and noticing her surroundings for the first time.

"We just touched down in DC," Daisy told her.

"So let's make a move," Cam said shifting to the other side of the bed, "I know there's going to be one FBI agent chomping at the bit to see you."

"Booth," Brennan breathed, her mind clearing at the mention of her partner, "No, he's in Afghanistan.

"He's back in DC," Cam said kindly, "Angela and Hodgins are as well."

"How?" Brennan asked.

"You have a lot of people who care about you," Cam smiled, "Now let's get you up. This is going to hurt I'm afraid but you set the pace and we'll go with you."

Her ribs screamed in protest and her body ached as Daisy and Cam helped her to her feet. She wobbled as she put weight on her legs and was sure she would have crumpled back to the bed if Daisy hadn't grabbed her around the waist and ducked under her arm so she was supporting most of her weight.

"Easy," Cam said ducking under her other arm and looking on in concern as Brennan struggled to gasp through the pain.

"Just," she gasped, a few tears escaping her clenched eyes, "Just give me a minute."

"Whenever you're ready," Cam said patiently, "Just take your time and breathe."

"We're home Dr. Brennan," Daisy said softly, "We survived."

* * *

Booth could see the conflict in her eyes as she stared at him. He could see it written clearly all over her face as she struggled and it broke his heart because he knew what she was struggling with. After their initial embrace she had stiffened and he knew why. He could see the longing in her eyes to come to him again, something he was positive was reflected in his own, but there was fear there as well. She was afraid of him and so was stuck in this awkward limbo where she was half leaning towards him and half shrinking away.

Angela saved the day and swooped in to embrace her friend softly, tears staining her cheeks as she cupped Brennan's cheek gently.

"Sweetie I'm so glad you're home," the artist said moving to wrap her arms around Brennan's waist when the anthropologist wobbled a little on her feet.

Booth wanted to scoop her up in his arms as soon as he saw her legs wobble but her best friend seemed to have her covered for the moment.

"Yes," Brennan said quietly ducking her head to try and avoid her friend's scrutinizing gaze.

"We should get moving," Cam said coming to stand next to Booth, "I've already called ahead to Georgetown and they know we're coming."

"Daisy and I will follow you," Sweets told them as he and Daisy headed over to his car.

Booth watched his partner as she whispered something in her best friend's ear and saw the artist's face twist painfully as she listened.

"Sweetie I know you think you're fine but you need to at least get checked over at the hospital," Angela said as Brennan held her arms tighter around her torso.

"I don't need to," Brennan said stubbornly, "I don't want to."

"Bones please..." Booth pleaded. He could see the pain reflected in her cerulean eyes but he also knew her and she would hate that people thought she looked weak.

"Bren, honey I know you hate hospitals," Angela said waiting until her friend met her eyes before she kept speaking, "But I'm not going to be able to relax until I know you're alright and, well that's not good for me, or for the little Hodgins that's growing inside of me."

"You're pregnant?" Brennan asked disbelievingly as Booth and Cam looked on in surprise.

"We just found out," Angela said smiling, "I didn't want to say anything just yet but with you being stubborn and well yourself I needed something to guilt trip you with."

"Congratulations," Brennan said softly her eyes falling to her friend's flat stomach.

"Really Ange congratulations," Booth said his face splitting into a grin.

"Thanks," Angela smiled back, "Now let's get going, we don't want to make the baby worry."

Booth moved to take Brennan's arm to help her towards the car but stopped short as she shrunk away from him, biting her lip in despair.

"I-Booth-I," she stammered but he smiled encouragingly at her.

"It's okay Bones," he said as Angela slowly began to help the anthropologist towards the car, "Let's just get you to the hospital and then we can get you home."

Inside he was slowly falling apart. She was afraid of him. It was like after the initial shock at seeing him had worn off her survival instincts had kicked in and her gut was telling her that he was dangerous. He knew it was probably a result of her kidnappers being male and it wasn't about him specifically but it still hurt that he couldn't reach out to her the way that he wanted.

The three women had stopped at the door of his SUV and he could immediately sense their problem. Brennan's pale forehead was beaded with sweat and he could tell she was in pain, the short walk to the car having taken a toll on her already battered body. The step up into the SUV would be almost impossible with her broken ribs and so the dilemma had arisen. Angela looked back over her shoulder at him as he approached, her eyes knowing and sympathetic.

"Bren, sweetie would it be okay if Booth helped you up into the car?" the artist asked her best friend, conscious of the other woman who had begun to tremble and lean heavily against her side.

"I can do it," the anthropologist said quietly struggling to escape her friend's hold on her.

"Bones," Booth said watching on concerned, "I'll be quick, let's just get it over with."

"No, I can," Brennan shook her head managing to pull herself out of Angela's grasp and stepping towards the car door Cam had opened.

Time moved in slow motion as the battered anthropologist's legs buckled beneath her exhausted body. Booth was by her side in an instant and caught her before she hit the ground lifting her up and into the car as quickly as he could. She cried out in pain as her torso was contorted as she fought his hold on her. He retracted his hands like they had been burnt and looked at his partner sorrowfully as terrified tears began to streak down her cheeks.

"I've got her," Angela said patting his shoulder as he hung his head, "You just get us to the hospital in one piece."

"It'll be alright big man," Cam patted him on the shoulder as she made her way to the front passenger seat, "She's been through hell, you'll just have to give her some time."

He could still hear Brennan crying quietly in the back seat as he did up his seat belt. He fought the urge to look in his rear view mirror but knew if he caught a glimpse of her tear stained face he would not be able to resist hopping into the backseat with her and holding her to him.

"Ssh," Angela soothed, "It's okay, it was just Booth, you're safe."

His fingers gripped the steering as they pulled out onto the main road. The sounds of his partner's crying pierced his heart and his fingers tightened around the steering wheel as he fought his natural urge to go to her. Eventually her cries quietened and he risked a glance in his rear view mirror. Brennan's head was resting against Angela's shoulder and her eyes were closed, the tear tracks evident against her pale cheeks. The steady rise and fall of her chest as she breathed let him know that her exhaustion had gotten the better of her and he sighed, making eye contact with Angela who was biting her lip to stop herself from crying audibly. The artist's cheeks were wet with her own tears and she smiled shakily at him before turning and kissing the top of Brennan's head.

Booth turned his eyes back to the road and focused on the traffic in front of him. He could hear Cam talking quietly to Sweets on the phone, the psychologist having already arrived at the hospital.

"We'll be there shortly," she said, "Tell them I sent you and they should have everything already set up."

"It's not fair," Angela said quietly from the back seat.

"What was that Ange?" Booth asked, sneaking another glance at his partner who slept on.

"It's not fair," Angela repeated, "She's been through more than enough for one person. It's not fair."

"It's bullshit is what it is," Booth muttered.

"Alright people," Cam interrupted, "Dr. Brennan and Daisy have been through hell but there's no point in dwelling on the fact. What they need from us is to be there for them so there will be no pity parties on my watch, do I make myself clear?"

"Yes Camille," Booth smirked as they pulled into the hospital parking lot. He had always admired his old friend's no nonsense attitude.

"You got it boss," Angela sniffed, using her free hand to wipe the tears from her face.

"Oh, and Seeley," Cam said, "Don't call me Camille."

"Don't call me Seeley," he retorted pulling them into a parking space and turning off the engine.

"I almost don't want to wake her up," Angela said softly looking over at her friend sadly, "She seems almost peaceful this way. I don't want to wake her up and remind her of everything that has happened."

"She panicked last time we woke her up so we'll have to tread carefully," Cam said turning in her seat to face the artist.

"I'll do it then," Angela said, "It might make it worse if it was you Booth," she said giving him a sad smile.

"Go on then, I'll wait outside," Booth said shortly hopping out before they could reply.

He leant against the car as he waited, not knowing how much more he could take. He knew she had faced horrors that he was probably better equipped to handle than anyone. He had more experience being kidnapped and tortured than anybody else he knew.

But how was he supposed to help her if she didn't let him anywhere near her.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: I know it's been awhile but I've finally finished my placement and will hopefully have some more time to write before I'm back at uni. Thanks to everyone who has been patient and has stuck around. **

**This is going to be pretty angsty for awhile but hang in there because they'll always be a light at the end of the tunnel.**

After what seemed like an eternity Angela managed to get Brennan out of the car and with Cam's help the two women helped their injured friend make the way slowly towards the hospital entrance. Booth walked a pace behind hands out, waiting to catch her if she fell. His breath hitched every time she stumbled but Angela and Cam held her steady. He could hear her laboured breathing and knew the strain on her ribs must be excruciating.

"We're nearly there sweetie," he heard Angela murmur to her friend and Booth was sure he heard Brennan whimper in response.

He saw it coming and his body moved before his brain even had time to register what was going on. Brennan's stumbling footfalls caught on an uneven piece of ground and she fell forward. Both Angela and Cam had a grip under her shoulders and they struggled to keep her upright. As her body threatened to give in to gravity their arms held her up and the opposing directions her body was being pulled in made her cry out in agony. Forgetting their situation all Booth saw was his partner start to go down and he swooped in and scooped her up making the two women who had been keeping her upright so far gasp in surprise as she was taken from their grasp.

"No!" Brennan sobbed struggling in his grasp, "No, oh God please don't."

"It's okay Bones," he said fighting to keep hold of her as she flailed in his arms, "It's just me, Booth. I'm not going to hurt you."

"No," she groaned her breathing coming in short pants, clawing at his arms the best she could, "No!"

"Booth," Angela said warily, placing a hand on his arm.

"It's okay Ange, I got this," he said facing the worried artist for a second before turning his attention back to the sobbing woman in his arms, "Bones you have to calm down or you're going to hurt yourself."

She went limp in his arms but continued to cry, as if her body didn't have any fight left in it. He was glad she had stopped struggling but he could tell that all her energy was going into not letting her head rest against his shoulder. Even though she wasn't still struggling he didn't count it as a victory. He knew if she had the energy and wasn't in so much pain she wouldn't have been content to let him carry her.

"You're going to be okay," he whispered to her, resisting the urge to place a kiss on the top of her head.

The automatic doors opened to reveal the bustling Emergency Room of Georgetown University Hospital and Booth groaned out loud when he looked around and spotted teams of people sitting around in the waiting room.

"Cam tell me you've got some sort of pull here," he said looking pleadingly at the pathologist.

"I'll do what I can but Emergency is obligated to treat people in a hierarchy of the seriousness of their injuries," Cam said, "I placed a call in before we came but it looks like there might have been a major trauma somewhere," she said looking around at the busy ER.

As Cam headed over to the Admissions desk Booth and Angela stood awkwardly near the doorway. Angela had moved so she was standing on Booth's side and was stroking her fingers delicately through Brennan's hair in an attempt to soothe her obviously distressed friend.

"Agent Booth, Angela," they whipped their heads around at the sound of a familiar voice, "Daisy and I have managed to commandeer a couple of seats over there," Sweets said pointing over to the far corner of the waiting room where they could see Daisy sitting wearily in a hard plastic chair.

"Didn't they have someone see her?" Angela asked.

"There was a seven car pileup on the highway," Sweets sighed, "They told us to wait and that they'd see us as soon as they could."

"That's bullshit," Booth said angrily, cursing internally when he felt Brennan tense in his arms. He glanced at Angela apologetically as the artist glared at him and murmured something to her friend.

"Did you tell them what has happened?" Angela asked.

"I explained, I flashed my FBI credentials but I was still told to wait," Sweets said, "Unless it's life threatening they're not seeing anyone right now."

"He's right," Cam sighed joining them, "They're stretched thin as it is and with the accident I'm afraid it might be awhile before they can see them."

"Isn't there anything you can do?" Booth asked.

"I'm sorry Seeley," Cam said.

Sweets and Daisy had managed to get three seats next to each other and with Daisy occupying one and with their group of seven Booth was tempted to sit with Brennan in his lap but he knew that wouldn't go down well. As if reading his thoughts Angela took it upon herself to take the seat on the right leaving a spare seat between her and Daisy. The artist looked up at him expectantly and he nodded reluctantly.

"Bren sweetie, Booth is going to sit you down next to Daisy and I okay," the artist said, waiting from some acknowledgement from her friend.

"Daisy?" Brennan asked hoarsely, turning her head to catch a glimpse of her grad student.

"I'm here Dr. Brennan," Daisy said kindly, "Booth is going to sit you down okay."

"Okay," Brennan finally agreed.

"Booth support her torso as much as you can as you set her down," Cam said to him.

He did as he was told but Brennan still groaned in pain as he set her down.

"Can't we get her anything for her ribs?" Booth asked pleadingly, hating seeing his partner in pain.

"Throw your credentials around a little bit," Angela said.

"I'll do my best," Cam said, "Sit tight Dr. Brennan. Seeley do you want to come with me?"

The way she said it Booth knew it wasn't really a question and after staring at his partner for a moment he followed the pathologist back over towards the Admissions desk.

"If we're going to be waiting her awhile it's probably a good idea if you get her something to eat," Cam said to him, "And enough with the hands on. I know you want to be there for her and play the knight in shining armour but you're going to have to hang back for awhile or at least stop trying to be so hands on with her."

"You're saying I should've just let her fall?" Booth asked angrily.

"No, I'm not saying you should've let her fall but I know you Seeley and I know that given the chance you're going to give into your instinct and wrap her up in a Booth bear hug," Cam said placing a hand on his arm, "You just have to give her some time and let Angela and I do the heavy lifting. I think the best thing you can do is just be there, be a presence but don't be in her face. Let her come to you, and she will when she's ready but you have to let her be the one to come to you."

"She's scared of me," Booth said and Cam's heart broke at the anguish she could see reflecting in his eyes.

"It's not you she's afraid of," Cam said smiling sadly at him, "It's what you represent."

"She's not freaking out around Sweets," Booth sighed, "Why is it just me?"

"Look, we don't even know exactly what happened to her and I'm sure there is a perfectly logical reason why she's reacting to you the way that she is but I'm telling you that you can't push her. You can't force her to want to come to you it has to come from her," Cam said, "Now go and find a vending machine or something and get everyone something to eat while I try and work the Saroyan charm on that scary looking nurse at the desk."

Sitting back was definitely not something Booth was good at. He was an action man and never sat on his hands just waiting. He knew what Cam had said was right but it didn't make it any easier to accept. His own brand of 'guy hugs' had served him well in the past, so much so that she had once commented on the fact that he was always around to hold her when she was scared or upset. To have to sit back now and watch as someone else offered her the hugs and comfort he had once been in charge off was going to be torture. Still, he wanted to be around when she finally did decide that she felt comfortable enough to want him near so he decided he was going to do exactly as Cam had said. He was going to be there for her in every way that he could without actually touching her. He knew it was going to probably be one of the hardest things he would ever do but he would do it for her.

Juggling several packeted sandwiches he headed decisively back to where their little group was seated. Brennan's face was pale and pinched in pain but she had stopped crying which made it a little easier for him to quell his urge to reach for her. Handing a packet to everyone he hesitated before handing Brennan's sandwich to Angela and went to stand next to Cam.

"How'd you go getting her some painkillers?" he asked taking a bite of the soggy egg sandwich he had procured for himself.

"No luck," Cam shook her head, "They won't hand out drugs until she's been seen by an ER doctor."

"And the ER doctor's are too busy to see her," Booth muttered angrily.

"Her injuries aren't life threatening," Cam reassured him, "We would know by now if her ribs had done any damage to her organs. She's in pain but it's not going to kill her."

"Thanks Camille, that's very reassuring," Booth said sarcastically turning his attention back to Angela who was arguing quietly with her best friend.

"Sweetie you need to eat something," Angela said holding the sandwich out to Brennan who was shaking her head, "Brennan you've have to eat," the artist said more forcefully.

"I'm not hungry," Brennan said softly, turning to face away from her friend, wincing when it pulled at her ribs.

"Dr. Brennan I know you didn't get to have the food they gave to us," Daisy said not needing to elaborate on who 'they' were, "But I did and while hospital food is far from nice this is a whole lot better than what we got there. I think you should eat it, if only to spite them. By eating now it's just another way to prove that they lost and we won. We're not there anymore," she said holding out half of her own sandwich to the wary anthropologist.

There was a moment of complete silence as the group watched on and everyone seemed to breathe a collective sigh of relief when Brennan took a small bite of the sandwich. Sweets smiled and kissed the top of Daisy's head before handing her the rest of his sandwich. Booth's brow furrowed as he thought about what had just taken place. Daisy Wick, perhaps the most annoying intern ever to step foot inside the walls of the Jeffersonian had just persuaded her stubborn boss to eat. Daisy Wick, the woman Brennan had once spent two hours ranting about as she wore a trail in the rug on his living room floor had just effectively done his job. He was the one who got her to eat. He was the one who brought her take out when she worked ridiculously long hours in the lab. He was the one who dragged her to the diner for breakfast when she refused to take a break for lunch. He was the one who turned up at her door in the middle of the night with Thai food and a smile. It was his job to make her eat and he had just been superseded by an overly peppy intern who had once been the bane of Brennan's existence.

Cam's hand on his arm reminded him of exactly why she was his oldest and dearest friend. She knew him and she knew how hard it was for him to watch his partner like this.

"Give it time Seeley," she said softly to him.

As well as Camille could read him he felt like he was one of the lucky few who could read Brennan like a book. He could read the little nuances in her face better than anyone but you didn't have to know her well to recognise what was going to happen next. With the sandwich halfway to her mouth Brennan's face took on a positively greenish tinge and Booth lurched forwards completely forgetting everything Cam had said to him earlier. He scrambled for the waste paper basket resting next to the table of magazines next to Angela and shoved it in front of her face as the small amount of food she had ingested rebelled against her stomach.

"Oh sweetie," Angela sighed pulling her friend's hair back as she continued to retch pitifully into the bin, "Just let it out."

When she was done Brennan groaned miserably and grasped at her ribs that were undoubtedly screaming in protest after her violent heaving. Her head lolled to the side obviously exhausted and Angela wrapped a comforting arm around her shifting so that Brennan's head rested on her shoulder.

"That's it," Booth growled, the soiled rubbish bin still clutched firmly in his hands, "I can't stand this anymore."

"Don't shoot anyone Agent Booth," he heard Sweets call after him as he stalked over towards the Admissions desk.

"Can I help you?" the portly nurse at the Admissions desk looked up at him as he glowered down at her.

"Special Agent Seeley Booth, FBI," he said flashing his badge and banging it down on the desk.

"You're with the kidnapping group as well I assume," the nurse said, "I've already spoken to Dr. Sweets and Dr. Saroyan from your group and like I've told them there's nothing we can do right now you'll just have to wait."

"Look lady, my partner has been held and tortured by an Indonesian terrorist group. She's been beaten and denied food and water. She's scared and she's in pain and I'm not moving until you find me a doctor who will see her," he growled.

"I understand that she's in pain but there are a lot of people here who are and unfortunately with the accident we've had to give priority to those who have been hurt in the crash," the nurse said.

"I'm sorry about the crash I really am but she's my partner and she's in pain there has to be something you can do," Booth pleaded with her.

"Agent Booth believe me if there was something I could do I would," she said sympathetically.

"Is there someone I can speak to?" Booth asked, "To see if we can speed this up a little."

"Sure," the nurse said, "You can speak to the little boy with the broken arm who has been waiting for three hours, or perhaps you'd like me to tell the woman who needs stitches in her forearm who has been waiting for four hours that she'll have to wait even longer because an FBI agent feels like his partner's pain is more important than anyone else who has been forced to wait because of the accident."

She was being snide with him and he itched to raise his voice at her but he knew she was correct. There was a waiting room full of people waiting to be seen who were in just as much pain as Bones and had been waiting longer to be seen.

"Do you know how long it'll be?" he asked.

"Hard to say Agent Booth," she said, "But I promise you we're doing everything that we can to get through seeing everyone."

"Okay, okay, thank you," he said, "Oh, my partner, she wasn't feeling well and was sick," he said brandishing the rubbish bin out in front of him in her direction.

"I'll get you a basin," she said compassionately taking the bin from him.

He thanked her when she returned and took the kidney bean shaped dish she handed to him. He smiled at the little boy with the broken arm as he passed on his way back to his group, suddenly feeling worse for wanting to push Brennan up through the list. He could only imagine how the boy's mother must be feeling having to wait while her son was injured, if it had been Parker, well he definitely wouldn't have been as patient as she was being.

Brennan's head was still resting against Angela's shoulder when he returned and the artist took the basin from him, tucking it safely into her friend's arms that rested in her lap. Brennan's eyes were closed and for a second Booth thought she had fallen asleep.

"Can I go home now?" she mumbled, "I just want to go home."

"Not yet sweetie," Angela said combing her fingers through her friend's hair, "We've got to wait a little bit longer to see a doctor and then we can go."

"I don't need a doctor I just need to go home and sleep," Brennan complained, "I'm tired Ange I just need to sleep."

"I know I'm sorry sweetie I really am," Angela said and Booth could tell that this was hurting the artist just as much as it was hurting him, "But you need to see a doctor. I promise as soon as that happens I'll take you home and you can sleep in your own bed."

"I'm just tired," Brennan sighed, the soothing motion of her friend's fingers combing through her hair making her sink further against Angela's body.

"Just rest Bones," Booth said softly as her eyes drooped closed.

The sounds of the bustling waiting room seemed to fade away as his attention was focused on nothing but the woman in front of him who was slowly drifting off to sleep. He longed to be the one her head rested against, he longed to be the one running his fingers through her soft hair. Instead he got to be the one who caught the basin before it hit the ground as it slipped from her grasp when she finally gave into her exhaustion and for the moment that was all he would have to be content being.

"_It won't be forever_," he had to remind himself, "_Not forever." _

**A/N: Hope that satisfies as an acceptable first chapter back. Send me a review to let me know you're still out there gentle readers.**


	15. Chapter 15

In the end they ended up having to wait nearly three hours before Brennan and Daisy could be seen. They had tried to lighten the mood for the younger anthropologist by not talking about the kidnapping but Booth found that he could think about nothing else. He knew Brennan had been through a lot in her life, encountered more heartache and pain than most people would ever experience but he had never seen her so open about her pain. His partner had always had a tough outer shell, always hiding her pain in case someone mistook it for weakness. For the select few who knew her well her outer shell was easily seen through to the pain that lay hidden underneath but to the rest of the world Temperance Brennan appeared cold and unfeeling.

He had always felt special that she chose to him to turn to when she was at her lowest, that she trusted him enough to let him share in her pain. For a brief moment he felt jealous that she was letting other people see how much she hurt before berating himself for even thinking such things. If she didn't have the strength to hide away how much she hurt than she must have really been through hell and that hurt him more than the fact that she currently couldn't stand for him to so much as touch her.

When Daisy was called through by an ER doctor Angela moved to wake Brennan who was still sleeping, her head resting heavily against her best friend's shoulder. Knowing how the forensic anthropologist had panicked the last few times she had been woken suddenly the artist spoke to her in soothing tones making sure she didn't touch her as she brought her friend towards wakefulness.

"You're safe sweetie but you need to open your eyes," Angela said softly as Brennan stirred.

"Leave me alone," Brennan whimpered, "I already told you I didn't tell, please just leave me alone."

"Bren, it's Angela, you're in DC and you're safe," Angela said firmly as Brennan jerked up from her shoulder, "It's okay," she said holding her hands out in a placating manner as Brennan looked for a moment like she was going to run.

They all watched as her eyes darted from side to side, looking like a trapped animal desperate for an escape. Booth knew exactly how she felt. It had taken him months after he was held as a prisoner of war before he didn't wake up in a cold sweat. She relaxed slightly as recognition filtered in through her panic and her desperation shone through as she spoke softly to her friend.

"Where is Daisy?" she asked looking over to where her grad student had been sitting.

"She's in with Sweets seeing the Doctor," Cam told her.

"Is she coming back?" Brennan asked her voice trembling.

"She'll be back in a second sweetie," Angela said, "They're just making sure she's okay."

"Sh-she didn't get a sufficient amount of food while we were," Brennan trailed off looking desperately at her friend, "Sweets should make sure she tells the doctor that."

"I'm sure Sweets will make sure she is well taken care of," Cam said reassuringly, "But if it makes you feel any better I will have a word to her doctor to make sure he got the full story."

"Yes, that, that will be acceptable," Brennan nodded, "Thank you Cam."

"Temperance Brennan," an older man holding a clipboard called looking across the waiting room.

"Okay, that's us," Cam said indicating to the doctor that they were the party he was looking for, "Dr. Brennan would you like us to help you stand or do you want to try on your own?"

Booth had to give Cam credit. Brennan relaxed when she was in control of her life and choices and the pathologist was letting her gain some dignity back by giving her back some of the control she had lost over the last couple of days.

"I'd like to try on my own," Brennan said resolutely.

Her face paled as she moved to stand and Booth was sure that she was going to be sick again. Her hands grabbed for her ribs and tears spilled out over her cheeks as she let out a pain filled groan.

"It's okay sweetie just let us help this time," Angela said using her thumb to wipe the tears off Brennan's cheek.

"Slowly," Cam told Angela, "And smoothly to avoid jarring her ribs."

The two women helped ease Brennan up off the chair and although he knew they were being careful Booth still caught the painful wince his partner did as she was helped to her feet. Booth watched as they helped her walk slowly over to where the doctor was standing. He sighed, taking the seat she had just vacated wanting nothing more than to follow them but knowing if he were to do as Cam said then he would have to give her some space. He had just reached for a magazine when he heard her voice.

"Booth," Brennan said timidly looking back over her shoulder at him.

He looked up at her expecting her to say more but she stayed silent, biting her lip as she stared at him.

"Bren, do you want Booth to come in with you?" Angela asked her silent friend.

"Yes, no, I don't know," her azure eyes conveyed her conflict.

"What if he comes with us but sits in the corner?" Angela asked.

"Yes," she said softly and he wouldn't have known her answer if she hadn't given an almost imperceptible nod of her head.

His heart soared and he got up and followed them hurriedly, still making sure he walked a step or two behind so he didn't risk crowding her.

"Temperance?" the doctor asked when they had made their way to him.

Brennan didn't answer and flinched away from his gaze as the doctor looked at Cam and Angela questioningly.

"This is Dr. Brennan," Cam supplied.

"Alright well if you'll just follow me this way then," he said kindly directing them down the corridor towards an open door.

The room they were led into was small with a single bed resting in the centre. Along the walls were numerous cabinets and posters, which, in Booth's opinion, did nothing to make the room look more inviting. Noticing his patient's discomfort the doctor lowered the bed allowing Cam and Angela to lower Brennan comfortably on it before he pumped a handle and it was raised so she was at eye level with him.

Following orders Booth sat himself on the small metal chair that rested in the corner of the room and did his best to not stare at his partner.

"My name is Dr. Tedder," the doctor said smiling kindly at them, "I've had a look at the statement Dr. Saroyan has provided us with," he continued and Booth was relieved she wouldn't have to retell her story to a complete stranger, "I'd like to draw some blood and take some X-Rays. I'd also like to do an exam just to make sure we don't miss anything."

As he snapped on his gloves and began to prepare the syringe to take the blood Angela moved to sit next to Brennan on the bed, taking her friend's hand and giving it a gentle squeeze. Cam came to stand next to where Booth sat and rested a hand on his shoulder, knowing how hard this was for him.

"Okay Temperance if you'll just stick out your arm for me and I'll see what I can do about finding a vein," Dr. Tedder said reaching for her arm.

"No!" Brennan cried, flinching away from him so violently that Angela, who was nearly thrown off the bed at her friend's sudden movement, gave a surprised squeal.

"It's okay Temperance it'll only sting for a moment," Dr. Tedder said misinterpreting her fear and moving to reach for her again.

"No!" Brennan cried again moving incredibly fast for someone with broken ribs, "Don't touch me!" she yelled scrambling as far away as she could before Angela grabbed her around the waist and stopped her from escaping any further.

Booth had stood from his chair and realised that his hand had automatically gone to his gun when he heard the distressed tone of his partner's voice. Rationally he knew that this man was not going to hurt her but his protective instinct had kicked in immediately after hearing her frightened pleas.

"Sweetie it's just the doctor," Angela soothed, "He's not going to hurt you."

"Please don't let him hurt me," Brennan cried hiding her face in Angela's shoulder. The artist shot Booth a worried glance as she tried to soothe her terrified friend and he tried to smile reassuringly at her but found that he simply couldn't muster up a smile.

"I need to examine her and she needs an X-Ray," Dr. Tedder said facing Booth and Cam, "If she won't let me near her I may have to sedate her."

"No, you can't sedate her," Booth said. He knew that she wasn't okay, that she was far from herself but having to be sedated, that was serious and he wasn't willing to admit that she was that far gone that she required sedation.

"I understand she's been through a traumatic experience sir but sedation may be the only way that she will get the treatment she requires," Dr. Tedder said.

"I have an idea," Cam piped up, "If you're willing to hear me out?" she addressed the doctor, continuing when he nodded, "I'm still a registered physician and a personal friend of your Chief of Medicine. If he's okay with it I'm more than qualified to perform an exam and draw blood from Dr. Brennan."

"I'd have to call Dr. Michaels and check," Dr. Tedder said.

"Of course," Cam nodded, "It will give us some time to," she trailed off, waving her hands vaguely in Brennan's direction.

"I'll be back in a few minutes," Dr. Tedder said removing his gloves and exiting the room, closing the door behind him.

"Dr. Brennan if you're okay with it I will check you over," Cam said firmly to a trembling Brennan.

"Yes," Brennan whimpered, "Not him, just not him."

"It's okay," Angela said smoothing the hair away from Brennan's forehead, "Cam will take good care of you."

Brennan sniffed and Angela handed her a tissue. Booth hadn't noticed that he had gradually been moving closer to where his partner sat until he realised he was an arm's length away from her. She looked up at him and he was lost in the broken expression on her face. Her watery blue eyes stared back at him and her name got lost on his lips as she reached out to him. She didn't reach for his hand, or touch his skin in any way, instead she took a firm grasp of the material of his jacket sleeve and held on. He didn't reach for her or acknowledge that she had reached for him. He chose to turn and speak to Angela who had smiled softly at her friend before looking up at him with a triumphant look in her eyes.

When Dr. Tedder returned with an okay from the Chief of Medicine, Cam donned a pair of gloves of her own and prepped the syringe, getting Brennan's permission before she wiped antiseptic along the inside of the anthropologist's elbow and drawing two vials of blood.

"All done," Cam said happily taping a cotton wool ball down over the pinprick wound.

Dr. Tedder took the vials from her and told them he would take them back to pathology and book an X-Ray for them. Cam thanked him before turning back to where her friends sat. She didn't fail to notice the death like grip Brennan had on Booth's jacket nor the way she leant heavily into Angela's side, seeming to reassure herself that both of them were still there. She hated having to do it, knowing how elated Booth must be considering Brennan was allowing him to be this close, but knew if she was going to properly examine Brennan it had to be done.

"Okay Dr. Brennan I'm going to listen to your chest to check your breathing and then I'm going to palpitate your chest to feel for the broken ribs," Cam said reaching for the stethoscope Dr. Tedder had left, "To do this I'm going to need for you to sit up as straight as you can," she said to Brennan, "And I'm going to need some wiggle room," to Booth and Angela.

"Bren, would you like me to move so Booth can sit next to you?" Angela asked.

"No!" Brennan said grasping for Angela's hand.

"Okay well you're going to have to let go of his jacket so he can move out of Cam's way," Angela said.

"I-I," Brennan stammered looking torn as she switched her gaze between Angela and Booth.

"It's okay Bones, I won't go anywhere," Booth said as Angela gently extricated her friend's hand from his jacket sleeve.

She whimpered as her hand dropped back to her lap and Cam moved in to take his place as he stepped back.

"I'm sorry it's cold," Cam said as Brennan winced when the cool stethoscope hit her skin.

Booth grimaced when he took in the myriad of different coloured bruises that covered his partner's torso. He recognised the boot shapes that were concentrated over her ribs and he cursed again that he wasn't the one to kill the bastards who had done this to her.

"Take a deep breath for me, as deep as you can and then hold it," Cam said, "I know it hurts but just a little longer, okay and breathe out. Okay once more," she said before pulling back and giving Brennan a sympathetic smile when the anthropologist groaned pitifully.

"Okay that was the worst of it," Cam promised, "Now I'm going to palpitate the area to discern what sort of break you have sustained."

"I understand," Brennan gasped as Cam's hands pressed into her side.

"Alright," Cam said pulling her hands away from Brennan's side and gently pulling the younger woman's shirt back over her torso, "I did an initial exam when we were on the plane but I'm fairly certain now that you have at least two separated ribs on your left side and some possible fractures on your right. As you know this will have to be verified with an X-Ray but I'm fairly certain."

"Okay," Brennan nodded biting her lip.

"Now they'll take about six weeks to heal properly and I'll prescribe you some anti-inflammatory's and I'll also start you on some narcotics for the pain," she held up her hand as Brennan started to interject, "At least for the first week or so the narcotics will help with your breathing and allow you to get some rest. After that I'll consider moving you onto a regular paracetamol but in the beginning the narcotics are the way to go. You're also going to want to ice them at least twice a day and get plenty of rest and once an hour you need to take a deep breath. The inclination with broken ribs is to take a lot of small, panting breaths and this can result in pneumonia as the lung underneath your ribs doesn't get the chance to fully expand which makes it like a breeding ground for infection. I'll get you a spirometer to help you with this. I'm sorry to say you're going to have a painful couple of weeks and you're going to want to have someone staying with you at least in the beginning because getting around is going to be painful and difficult but you should be fine in about six weeks."

"When will I be able to get back to work?" Brennan asked suddenly.

"Wha-Bones-no Cam just said you need to rest," Booth said.

"Sweetie you need to concentrate on getting better before you worry about work," Angela said.

"Murderers don't take time off," Brennan muttered and Booth was elated to see the familiar stubborn set of her jaw.

"Dr. Brennan as your doctor and your boss I'm ordering you to take at least two weeks off," Cam said, "Your body needs time to heal and you won't be doing yourself any favours by pushing yourself too fast too soon."

"I don't want to just sit around for two weeks," Brennan said, "It's a waste of my time."

"Brennan," Angela said sternly, "I know you and I know how you deal but I'm putting my foot down this time. You're not working yourself into oblivion this time and I'm going to make sure you take the time to rest and heal properly before you get back to work. You're surrounded by people who care about you and who don't want to see you hurt anymore than you have to so don't argue because I'd hate to go all crazy hormonal pregnant woman on you."

"Sorry to interrupt," Dr. Tedder said sticking his head in the doorway, "But they're ready for you up in X-Ray."

"I'm going with her," Angela said resolutely, getting down off the bed as Dr. Tedder wheeled in a wheelchair.

"I'm going to go and fill your prescriptions for the anti-inflammatory and pain meds and then I'll meet you in the waiting room," Cam said squeezing Brennan's shoulder.

"Thanks Cam," Booth said to her as she left.

Dr. Tedder lowered the bed so Brennan's feet touched the ground, making the transition from sitting to standing less painful for the battered woman. Angela helped her friend off the bed and into the wheelchair and stood next to Booth.

"Sweetie do you want Booth to come with us as well?" Angela asked.

"If he wants to," Brennan said casually but Booth didn't miss the glance she threw his way.

"Of course I want to," he told her, "As long as it's okay with you."

"Well we'll really have to make a move," Dr. Tedder said, "X-Ray is booked solid so we can't keep them waiting."

"Booth's coming," Angela said making the decision for them, "Come on Doc, let's get this show on the road."

**A/N: Bet you weren't expecting another chapter so soon. I'm going to try and update more regularly until I go back to uni so expect more chapters than usual in the next week or so. Hope you're all still enjoying the story and as usual I'd love to hear what you're thinking.**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: Sorry I've been so slack in updating. I can't even begin to describe how busy I've been. I've just started another block of practical placement so I'm going to do my best to update more regularly. Thank you to everyone who has stuck around and taken the time to send me through a review.**

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The X-Rays had confirmed everything Cam had suspected and soon Booth was following Angela and a wheelchair bound Brennan back down towards the ER department's waiting room. As Angela continued to wheel her friend towards where they could see Cam, Daisy and Sweets sitting Booth hung back to speak with Dr. Tedder.

"Dr. Tedder I just wanted to thank you for being so understanding," Booth said holding out his hand to the doctor who shook it happily.

"No problem Agent Booth," Dr. Tedder said, "I've been reassured by your dark haired friend that Temperance is going to be in good hands so I'm very confident that she'll make a full recovery, in every sense of the word," he said knowingly, "Look after her son," he said patting Booth on the back before turning and heading back to the Admissions desk to get his next patient.

"Hurry up G-Man," Angela said, "You're our wheels."

"Agent Booth if I could have a word before you go," Sweets said pulling Booth aside as their group made their way out through the Emergency Room doors.

"What is it Sweets?" Booth asked impatiently, looking over to where Angela and Daisy were helping Brennan up and out of her wheelchair.

"I'm concerned that Dr. Brennan might be suffering from PTSD," Sweets said, "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder," he said clarifying for Booth.

"I know what PTSD is Sweets I'm ex-military remember," Booth growled, "And Bones doesn't have it, she's a bit shaken up at the moment sure but she doesn't have PTSD."

"Booth from what I've seen in the last couple of hours she's displaying many classic symptoms. There's no need to get defensive about it, it's a perfectly natural response to what she's been through."

"You don't even know what she's been through," Booth said through gritted teeth.

"I know some," Sweets said, "Daisy has been talking to me. Don't be angry at her Booth, she's been through hell as well," Sweets said suddenly stern.

"I'm not angry at her," Booth sighed, "Is she alright?"

"She'll be fine," Sweets said, "I'll make sure of it."

"That's good Sweets," Booth said sparing another glance over to his partner who was leaning heavily against her friend, "Look is that all? I'd really like to get Bones home."

"All I'm saying is be prepared Booth. It's not going to be easy for her and you know as well as I do that Dr. Brennan does not like to talk about her feelings but that is not healthy for her right now. I know you and you'll do anything to spare her pain but allowing her not to talk about this, that could be the worst thing you could do for her."

"I'm not going to force her to talk about something that will hurt her Sweets," Booth said angrily.

"Don't force her but just remind her that you are there for her when she wants to talk to you," Sweets said, "And I also recommend that she come and speak to me."

"You know what Sweets that's enough," Booth said holding his hands up, "I think you're good at what you do, I do, not the shrink stuff but the profiling you're good at that but Bones is my partner and I'm going to help her through this okay so just back off."

"You're not alone in this Booth," Sweets said following him towards their cars, "Just remember that, there's other people who care about her as well."

"I know that Sweets," Booth said, "You just concentrate on helping Daisy okay, and leave Bones to me."

"Ready to head home?" Sweets asked Daisy as they reached the women.

"Just give me a moment okay," Daisy said to Sweets, giving Angela and Cam a glance. The older women nodded, seeming to understand what Daisy meant without words having to be said. Angela helped Daisy duck under Brennan's arm and once she was sure her friend was supported she stepped away giving the two of them some privacy.

"Dr. Brennan," Daisy began.

"Temperance," Brennan interrupted her, "I think it would be okay if you call me Temperance when we're outside of work."

"Temperance, okay, I know you don't like to talk about things and from a scientific point of view I can understand why but if you need anything you know you can call me okay," Daisy said.

"I feel that in the past I may have underestimated you Daisy," Brennan said, "I am aware that you were also, it uh, you were there with me and should you need someone to speak to I would be available."

"Thank you Temperance," Daisy smiled squeezing the older woman's shoulders, "We survived," she said softly.

"Yes," Brennan nodded, "We did."

"I'd like to hug you but I don't want to hurt your ribs," Daisy said.

"I think I would appreciate it nonetheless," Brennan said sighing as Daisy gently wrapped her arms around her mentor, "We were the only ones who survived," she whispered.

"Yes," Daisy nodded sadly as she pulled back, "We were," she sniffed.

"I think I'd like to go home now," Brennan said looking away.

"Oh, okay, you just heal up okay," Daisy said, "And call me, if you need anything."

"Yes," Brennan said, "Although I doubt that will be necessary."

"Okay, well," Daisy said, "Take care."

"You too," Brennan said wavering slightly on her feet.

"Time to go Bones," Booth said hovering around his partner as he watched her wobble.

"Sweetie are you sure you don't want to take your meds before you get up into the car?" Angela asked worriedly.

"I want to take a shower when we get home," Brennan said, "Pain medication often makes me drowsy."

"Okay," Angela said uncertainly as Booth opened the door for them, "Booth is going to have to help you up."

"Fine," Brennan grit her teeth.

"I'm sorry Bones," Booth said as he lifted her up and into the car as quickly as he could. He hated how her body tensed as soon as he touched her and he hated the pain filled groan that escaped her lips as her ribs were strained. He let go of her like he had been burnt as soon as he was sure she was safely in the car and stared at her sadly, hoping that she would at least meet his eye. She kept her gaze focused on the floor and he sighed before closing the door.

She had wanted him earlier, hadn't wanted him to leave her side, or at least she had wanted him close. It hurt him, made his heart clench painfully every time she pulled away but he was even more determined to stick by her side. He didn't want to admit that Sweets might be right. It was too much. He had to focus on the now, it was the only way he was going to get through the night.

The drive home was mostly silent. He could hear Angela murmuring softly to her friend in the backseat but couldn't work out what she was saying. In all honesty he wasn't even sure he wanted to know. He kept going back to what Sweets had said. Daisy had shared some of what had happened with him and Booth could feel the anger building inside of him that the psychologist had an insight into what had happened to his partner. He knew it was Daisy's prerogative to tell, the intern had been through hell as a well and needed to share with someone, but it still hurt.

Booth pulled the car into the spot next to where's his partner's Prius, turning the engine off and turning to face the two women in the back seat.

"Brennan would like for you to help her out of the car but then she would like to try getting up to her apartment on her own," Angela said answering his unasked question as to what they were speaking about. He caught the artist's eyes and they shared a look; she obviously disagreed with his partner's decision but they at least owed it to her to try.

"Okay," Booth sighed.

"Dr. Brennan, if this is really what you want then that is okay but you shouldn't try and push yourself," Cam supplied, "You could damage your ribs further and push back your recovery time."

"I can do it," Brennan said softly and it was her quiet determination that spurred him into action.

She whimpered again when he lifted her out of the car and he had to physically force himself to put her down. It was going to be slow moving getting her upstairs and he was grateful that her apartment building at least had an elevator. Angela and Cam helped her shuffle slowly to the front of the building before she sagged against her best friend and let out a muffled sob.

"Bren…"

"I can do it," she cried, "I-I can."

"You can," Booth said stepping in, "We know you can but you're upsetting Angela by not letting us help you."

"And you know I can't afford to get too upset right now," Angela said, "Just let Booth help you upstairs sweetie, for me."

"Is it okay for me to help you Bones?" Booth asked.

"Yes," she said softly.

"You know how upset I was to come home and find out how horribly the Phillies have been doing," Booth said as he gathered his partner into his arms, "It's an embarrassment really. I knew I never should've left."

"What like your presence in DC makes them play better," Cam said incredulously catching onto his plan, "Give it up Seeley, you know the Rangers have got it in the bag this year."

"In your dreams Camille," he smiled good-naturedly at his friend as they waited for the elevator.

They kept the inane conversation up until they reached her door and Booth was sure she had relaxed slightly in his arms. Angela fished a key out to Brennan's apartment from her bag and walked in ahead of them, switching the lights on as she went.

"Home sweet home Bones," Booth said as he stepped through the front door, placing her gently on the floor. He took his chances and kept his arm wrapped around her waist as Cam and Angela were busy, the pathologist going over to the kitchen table and sorting through the medications Brennan had been given and the artist disappearing down the hallway. She didn't react to his touch and stared at her living room, seeming to be lost in her own thoughts. He didn't want to break her concentration so he stood quietly beside her, watching her as she took in her things.

He knew what it was like to believe that you would never return to your own home. He had experienced the crippling despair that came along with knowing you would never get to sleep in your own bed, or see the sunrise from your living room window.

"You'll need to eat something," Cam spoke from the kitchen, cutting through the silence, "The narcotic pain meds are to be taken with food."

"I'm not hungry," Brennan said immediately, tensing in his grasp as she seemed to come back to herself.

"Dr. Brennan you have to eat something," Cam said sympathetically, "Your body needs the sustenance to recover and you can't take the meds on an empty stomach."

"What about a milkshake?" Booth asked, "Will that be okay?"

"For now," Cam sighed, "But she really needs to try and eat something."

"But for tonight, can she have a milkshake tonight and still be able to take the meds?" Booth asked.

"Yes," Cam nodded, "But tomorrow she'll have to try and eat something more substantial."

Brennan knew she should be angry at them for talking about her like she wasn't even in the room but she couldn't muster up the energy. Her sides burned with every breath she took and Booth's hand felt like it was being branded into where it rested tentatively on her waist. Her mind was trying to wrap itself around the fact that she was standing in her apartment and looking around at all her things but it seemed to good to be true.

"Bren, sweetie I've got the bathroom ready if you want to have a shower," Angela pulled her from her musing and it took her a few times before her eyes could focus on her best friend's face. The artist was standing in front of her, reappearing from the depths of her apartment where she had disappeared into as soon as they entered.

"Okay," Brennan said.

"When you're done you should take your pain medication and get some rest," Cam said."

"Okay," Brennan nodded letting Angela guide her towards the bathroom.

She felt the absence of Booth's hand as soon as it left her side and she hated that a part of her felt relieved that he wasn't touching her anymore. She felt so conflicted and it was making her head hurt. She had wanted nothing more when she was kidnapped to be able to see him again, to finally tell her how wrong she had been but now, there was a part of her brain that was screaming at her that he was a danger every time he came near. Rationally she knew Booth would never hurt her but something inside of her expected him to. The torture she had endured during her kidnapping had resulted in a far more painful consequence.

"I'm going to stay here tonight," Angela said as she helped her towards the bathroom.

"That's really not necessary," Brennan said although the thought of being alone made her blood run cold.

"No way," Angela shook her head, "You're not going to push me away."

"Okay," Brennan sighed and she knew without having to look that Angela would be surprised that she was giving in so easily, "I think I will probably just be going to sleep though, I'm quite tired."

"And you're in pain," Angela said helping her into the bathroom and closing the door softly behind them, "As soon as we're done in here I'm sure Cam will have your meds sorted and then you'll be high as a kite in no time."

"I don't know what that means," Brennan said scrunching her face up as her friend laughed.

"I've missed you sweetie," Angela smiled, "Now let's get you out of these clothes."

"I should probably be making some sort of amusing quip after you said that shouldn't I," Brennan said making her friend laugh again.

"Probably, but I'll let it slide this time," Angela smiled reaching in to turn on the shower.

Angela chatted carelessly about plans for the baby as she helped her shower and even though her friend tried to keep it relaxed it was still awkward and uncomfortable. Brennan could feel her strength fading and had to rely heavily on her friends support to remain standing. She couldn't raise her arms higher than her navel without her ribs starting to pull painfully so Angela had to help her wash her hair, shoulders and face. Brennan could feel the humiliation burning deep inside and having to rely so heavily on someone else in such an awkward position and it was a testament to Angela that she carried on with the task without making it any more uncomfortable than it had to be.

"I knew there was the Bren I know and loved in there somewhere underneath all that dirt and grime," Angela said as she helped her friend out of the shower.

The shower had felt heavenly, almost like it was washing away the horrible events of the last few days. Brennan knew of course that this was impossible but it still felt nice to allow her tired mind that one concession. Her body was beginning to feel like lead and she was beginning to regret her decision not to take the painkillers straight away.

"Thanks for helping Ange," Brennan said softly as Angela helped her get changed.

"Of course," Angela said softly suddenly serious, "You know you don't have to even ask."

"I know," Brennan sighed.

Dressed in a comfortable pair of flannelette pyjama bottoms and a baggy t-shirt she felt almost human again. Angela huffed after she helped her pull the shirt over her head and turned back to face the shower.

"Later we might have to put studly out there to work," she sighed leaning into the shower, "Your shower sounds like it might have a leak."

She hadn't heard while Angela had been helping her get changed, the artist's cheerful conversation had drowned out the noise and she had been concentrating on not falling over. Now the sound penetrated her eardrums and she felt the world slip away. Every warm feeling she had been feeling moments ago disappeared and it was calm for a moment before it all went to hell.

_Drip, drip, drip. _


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Look at me posting on time this week! Thanks for everyone who reviewed the last chapter. Hope you enjoy this new one.**

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_Every warm feeling she had been feeling moments ago disappeared and it was calm for a moment before it all went to hell._

_Drip, drip, drip. _

Her senses reeled as she fought for control. The steady dripping sound mocking her as he inched closer. She could hear his heavy breathing and almost taste the putrid flavour of his mouth as he shoved his tongue down her throat. The dead, lifeless eyes of her colleagues stared up at her from where they had fallen, sprawled on the ground like their lives had meant nothing. In the background she could hear Angela's worried voice calling to her but she had been tricked before. She had believed Booth was there and that had turned out to be a cruel trick her dehydrated mind had played on her.

She recoiled as his hand touched her shoulder and cried out as she twisted painfully from his grasp.

"Get away from me," she cried hitting away his hand as it reached for her again.

"Bren, it's just me sweetie," his mouth turned up into a cruel smile as he used the nickname reserved for her best friend.

"Stop it," she growled, "Stop pretending that you're her."

She turned away as if to run and cried out as her foot got twisted amongst the bodies that lay strewn across the floor. She reached for anything that could support her and floundered uselessly before tripping to the floor. Already expecting the blows she knew would come she curled her body as much as she could with her injured ribs and tried her best to block out their vindictive taunts she knew would accompany the beating.

"I didn't tell anyone," she cried tears spilling out over her cheeks as she hid her face from view, "I didn't, I didn't."

Her sides screamed and her head pounded in agony but she didn't care. She counted ever time her head pulsed and concentrated on anything but the impending beating.

Only the beating never came.

She waited for the blows to rain down on her, for the heat of the room to cause the sweat to mingle with the blood that would trickle from newly opened wounds. Only the room wasn't hot and the floor she lay on was cold and hard beneath her tense body and when she finally found the courage to look up it was the soft, concerned eyes of her best friend that stared back at her, not the cold, cruel eyes of her kidnappers.

"Ange?" she croaked, her throat constricted around the tears that were still streaming down her face.

"Yes," Angela breathed clearly relieved, "It's me, you're okay."

"Angela I'm coming in," she heard Booth's voice call out from behind the closed door.

"It's okay Booth," the artist called back as the door opened and her partner joined them.

"What's wrong? What happened? Bones are you okay?" he asked somehow having the foresight to not crouch down to her level.

"I don't know what happened," Angela stammered.

"It's okay," Booth said although Brennan could hear the worry evident in his tone, "It's okay, we'll sort it out. Bones I'm going to help you up okay."

"Okay," she said quietly, all the fight having left her.

He didn't ask her this time but picked her up carefully. She didn't have the energy to fight him and let her arms hang limply around his neck.

This is Booth, this is Booth, this is Booth she repeated over and over again in her head as her body threatened to panic.

The covers on her bed had been pulled back and a large glass sat on her bedside table. The pillows had been arranged to offer her the most support, as she would have to lie on her back until her ribs recovered. Booth placed her gently on the bed catching himself before he placed a kiss on the top of her head. He settled for pulling the covers up around her and giving her a soft smile as he stepped back.

"I've made you a banana smoothie," he said holding it out to her, "Complete with all the fruit stuff you're always telling me I should eat more of."

"I can't," she protested, "I just want to sleep."

"I know Bones," he said sadly, "I'm sorry. You don't have to drink it all, but you can't take your meds on an empty stomach."

She could still feel remnants of the terror she had felt moments earlier and that coupled with the burning in her side compelled her to take the offered glass from him. The smoothie tasted wrong as it slid down her throat and she swallowed down the gag reflex as it hit her stomach. Her stomach churned, not used to having food in it and she groaned at the unpleasant feeling.

"You don't feel like you're going to be sick do you?" Booth asked hovering nervously by the side of her bed.

"No," she swallowed.

"Can I come in?" Angela asked anxiously from the door to her bedroom, "I come bearing narcotic pain medication."

"Bones is just enjoying fruit Booth style," Booth smirked ushering the artist in.

"Booth style, there's a few things I'd like to experience Booth style," Angela winked as the FBI agent's face flushed crimson.

"Ange you're married," Brennan spoke as she tried to reach over and place the glass back on the bedside table.

"Can't stop a girl from dreaming sweetie," Angela laughed as Booth swooped in to help his partner place the glass back, "Are you ready for your meds?"

"She hasn't finished her smoothie yet," Booth said glancing into the glass.

"I can't," Brennan protested.

"It's okay, you've had some," Angela stepped forward, "You can work up to more. Studly would you mind grabbing Bren a glass of water?"

After Booth left Angela went around the side of the bed and situated herself beside her friend.

"Ange, what are you doing?" Brennan asked.

"Keeping you company," Angela shrugged, "I know if I'm not feeling the best I like to have someone with me so I'm pretending you're me and acting accordingly."

"I have a spare room," Brennan pointed out.

"I'd bet money that one FBI Special Agent Seeley Booth has dibs on that."

She couldn't even muster up the energy to argue. Sighing she let herself sink further against the mattress, bringing a hand up to rub her tired eyes.

"Dr. Brennan, before you go to bed you'll have to use this to take some deep breaths," Cam said appearing in the doorway brandishing the spirometer, "We can wait for the meds to start to work before we try though," the pathologist said kindly.

"Which you can now do," Booth said returning with the glass.

Brennan was almost certain that there had never been this many people in her room at one time. As if sensing her panic Booth placed the water next to her bed and left the room quietly. It was always something she had appreciated about her partner, that he was always somehow able to sense exactly how she was feeling without her ever having to express the words.

"Bren," Angela said handing her the pills.

She swallowed them down with the help of the water and sighed.

"I don't want to speak about it," Brennan said wishing she could turn on her side so she could turn away from her friend.

"Dr. Brennan I know you've been through a lot but it's important that you take some deep breaths," Cam said appearing in her line of vision.

Thankful that the pillows supported her back in such a way that she didn't have to try and sit up again Brennan took the spirometer the pathologist was holding out to her. She half-heartedly listened to Cam's instructions and braced herself for the pain she knew would come with using the device. She had broken ribs before so she knew how it worked and did as she was instructed feeling the tears prick in her eyes at the sharp spike of pain taking a deep breath brought.

"That's it sweetie," Angela encouraged, "You're nearly done."

"No more," Brennan cried, "Please no more."

"Okay, okay," Cam said, "You did great, I know it hurts but it's important we do this every couple of hours to ward off infection."

"I'm going to go and tell Booth the instructions with the meds and the spirometer," Cam said, sensing the other woman had hit her limit, "Dr. Brennan," she said placing a comforting hand over her blanket covered knee, "I just wanted to tell you how glad I am that you are okay, as an employee and as a friend, you would have been hard to replace."

"Thanks Cam," Brennan nodded tiredly finally starting to feel the pain medications take effect.

"Let's get you comfortable," Angela said once the pathologist had left the room. She busied herself with pulling blankets up around her friend and making sure her ribs were being supported.

"There we are," she smiled at Brennan who was staring back at her with drowsy eyes.

"Leave the light on," Brennan said as Angela hopped off the bed to go and switch the main lights off.

Angela looked back at her friend and gave her a sympathetic smile, "What if we leave the lamp on next to your bed and turn this one off, would that be okay?"

Brennan nodded. The thought of being plunged into complete darkness made her pulse race as fear clawed at her stomach. In the darkness she felt alone and scared and as much as she hated to admit it to herself she wasn't ready to be alone.

"Okay, there we go," Angela said bathing the room in a warm orange glow as she switched on the lamp on Brennan's bed side table, "Is that okay Bren?"

"Yes," Brennan mumbled feeling her mind start to cloud over as the meds filtered through her system. She was having trouble keeping her eyes open and watched her friend through slitted eyes as she went back around to the other side of the bed and hopped under the covers.

"Get some sleep sweetie," Angela said softly, brushing the hair away from her friend's forehead, "I'll be here when you wake up."

Brennan felt her eyes slide closed as her friend's fingers running through her hair soothed her closer to sleep. She could remember her mother doing the same thing to her as a child and it felt comfortable and familiar. The feeling of Angela's warm body next to hers was comforting and she felt herself begin to slide into sleep. Through the haze of medication one pair of soulful brown eyes broke their way through the foggy thoughts floating around her head and she wanted to open her eyes again but the fight was futile and she couldn't stop herself from drifting into a deep, medicated sleep.

"Booth," the agent's name tumbled from the anthropologist's lips and Angela paused.

"Bren, sweetie do you want me to get Booth for you?" she asked but received no answer other than the slow, deep breaths of someone who had fallen into a deep sleep.

"Oh sweetie," Angela said softly, closing her eyes momentarily before steeling herself for what she knew would come, "You can come in Booth," she called, knowing he would be waiting on the other side of the door.

"How is she?" Booth asked slipping in through the partially open door.

"She's sleeping," Angela said sparing a glance at her friend.

"Good," Booth sighed, "Good, that's good."

He went to the armchair that sat in the corner of the bedroom and moved it so it sat at her bedside. He took a moment to stare at her and smiled at the fact that her face was finally free from the lines that indicated she was in pain. He brushed his fingertips over her cheek before finding her hand and lacing his fingertips through hers. He knew that while awake she wasn't comfortable with him being this close but he needed this, needed to feel the warmth of her skin to know that she was alive.

"What happened before?" he asked the artist who had been watching him closely, "In the bathroom, what happened?"

"I don't know," Angela sighed sinking down into the pillows, "She was fine, well not fine, but she was doing okay and then suddenly it was like she wasn't there anymore. It was scary Booth, like she couldn't see me and then when I touched her she freaked out, I'm talking Blair Witch here Booth. She tried to get away but tripped and fell and god it must have hurt her, and she told me to stop pretending to be her and then she curled up in a ball and kept saying that she didn't tell anyone. She was so scared that I'd hurt her," Angela said her breath hitching, "And then it was over, something pulled her out of it and she was back and I was me and then you came in."

"God," Booth breathed, looking into his partner's sleeping face. He knew what it was like to have flashbacks. He'd seen many of his men suffer from them after the horrors of war and had been suffered from them himself when he had first returned from serving his country.

"What did Sweets say to you?" Angela asked him suddenly, "When we were at the car, what did Sweets say? You looked so angry at him."

"He told me to watch for signs of PTSD," Booth ground out, "That she was displaying signs that he thought meant she could be suffering from it."

"Oh Bren," Angela said taking her friend's other hand, "What can we do? To help her? How do we get her through this?" she asked desperately.

"It doesn't mean she has it," Booth said angrily, "Just because some twelve year old shrink says something doesn't make it true."

"Booth," Angela said softly, "You saw what happened, when we woke her up in the car, in the bathroom…"

"It doesn't mean anything," Booth exclaimed, "She's just tired and still trying to recover from her injuries."

"Pretending that nothing's wrong isn't going to make it go away," Angela said, "You can't help her if you can't even admit to yourself that maybe she has injuries that we can't see on the outside."

"It's not fair," he said after awhile, breaking the silence, "She's had to put up with so much bullshit her entire life and now…" he waved his free hand in the air.

"I know," Angela said softly, turning on her side so she could see him, "But there's no point in us having a pity party for her, that's not going to help anyone. She's going to need us to be strong Booth, she's going to need for us to help her understand what's going on because we both know that she's never going to be the first one to admit she's got a problem."

"There's nothing I hate more than admitting Sweets might be right," Booth said.

"I know Studly but you'll do it to help your girl," Angela said smirking when he started to protest, "Come off it G-Man we both know it's true."

"This wasn't how I saw our homecoming," he said, "I thought I'd have time to sort through my feelings, begin to move on."

"Sweetie you two are the meant to be sort of love, even if you're both too boneheaded to admit it, there is no moving on from that."

"I told her Ange," he said sounding broken, "I told her and she turned me down. I don't have a choice I have to try."

"She's scared," Angela said simply, "If there is anything she is not good at it is dealing with feelings. When you put it all out on the table like that she got a glimpse at what she could have and it was wonderful, everything she had ever wanted. To feel loved, to feel wanted, to feel safe, that's all she's ever wanted but then she falls back on what she's always known, anyone she's ever loved has abandoned her and for that I will never forgive Max, Christine and Russ Brennan," Angela growled, "You dangle in front of her everything she's wanted and for a second she believes that maybe it is okay to give yourself over to another person, to let them love you and love them back and she sees how great it could be and then she realises that she doesn't want to lose it. She doesn't want to feel so loved and then have that ripped away from her. Part of Bren thinks that the reason everyone has left her is because of her. She still has that insecurity of the child whose parents have split up and they think it was their fault. She thinks that there is something wrong with her, something that makes everyone leave and she realises that she couldn't possibly lose you. So she runs, she pretends she doesn't feel the same and is heartbroken in the process."

"Heart crushed," Booth murmured, "Never mind," he said off Angela's confused look, "How can she still think I would leave? Haven't I proven to her enough times that I'm here to stay?"

"She'd say something about evidence," Angela said looking fondly at her friend, "How everything that has happened to her in the past points towards you leaving."

"I wouldn't do that, I would never leave her," Booth said vehemently.

"I know big man," Angela said soothingly, "But the point is did she actually say that she doesn't have feelings for you? Did those words pass through her lips because if they did then maybe yes you do need to move on but if they didn't if she didn't actually say she doesn't have feelings for you then you need to hang on and give her some time, let her process and you might just get everything you ever wanted."

"How do you know all this?" Booth asked.

"If there is anything I'm good at it's amazing sex and relationship advice."

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**A/N: Thanks for all those out there reading. Send me through a review, let me know what you think.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed and alerted the last chapter. It's really great that people are actually reading this story, still surprises me that someone likes what I'm writing. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

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At some point he must have fallen asleep in the armchair because the next thing he knew his wristwatch was beeping at him, waking him from his slumber. His back ached and he grimaced at the cracks as he sat up properly. The room was bathed in a warm orange glow and it took him a second to gain his bearings. He must've fallen asleep after speaking with Angela and his back was definitely letting him know that it hadn't been a good idea. His watch beeped again and he switched it off, staring at it in confusion before he realised what it meant.

Cam had gone through Brennan's medication schedule with him before she had left and he had set the alarm on his watch to remind him when it was time for her to take some more. Angela was lying on her side, her hand still clasped around her sleeping friend's, he could see her phone resting next to her on the bed and assumed she must've placed a call in to her husband after he had fallen asleep. Both women were still sleeping but he could see the creases in his partner's forehead that signalled that she wasn't sleeping peacefully.

Grabbing the empty glass from the table he crept quietly out into the darkened living room and into the kitchen. Cam had been very specific with the medication requirements and he made sure he wrote everything down. The pathologist had recommended that Brennan eat several smaller meals a day to get her metabolism used to having food again so she had suggested that she swallow the pills with a portion of the smoothie Booth had made earlier in the evening. Pouring a small amount into a clean glass he double-checked his list again and grabbed the right medication.

Placing everything he needed back on the bedside table he hovered uncertainly over his partner. It would be so easy to simply reach down and shake her awake, like he had done on numerous other occasions when she had fallen asleep in his office or on his couch but he had no idea how she was going to react if he did. Sighing he went over to Angela's side of the bed and shook her awake, taking a step back when the artist glared back at him.

"What?" she growled running a hand through her unkempt hair.

"Wow, I suddenly have more respect for Hodgins," Booth grinned, "It's time for Bones to take more pain meds but I uh, I don't want to startle her by waking her up."

"Oh," Angela's face softened immediately, "It's okay I'll do it you just hang back."

He watched as the artist spoke softly into her friend's ear, making sure she wasn't touching the anthropologist, she spoke again when her attempt got no response. Brennan's eyes popped opened and she went to sit up, stopping only when the pain in her ribs flared.

"It's okay sweetie it's just Angela and Booth you don't need to get up," Angela said suddenly holding her hands out in a placating manner, "You're okay."

"What's going on?" Brennan asked her gaze switching back and forth frantically between her two friends.

"It's okay Bones," Booth said recognising her confusion, "You're home. Cam and the FBI team got you out and we took you to the hospital earlier remember."

He had experience the same disorientation when he first came back from the war. It was overwhelming to wake up and not know where you were and it had always taken him a few minutes to get his bearings and calm the pounding in his chest.

"I remember," she said slowly, the haze clearing from her eyes as she came more aware of her surroundings, "We're home."

"Yeah we're home," Angela nodded, "It's time for you to take some more pain meds."

"I've got a little more of the smoothie for you to take them with this time," Booth said, "Cam thought it might help build up your appetite if you ate several small meals and since you're supposed to eat when you take the meds I thought you could swallow them down with this."

"I'm not hungry," Brennan said automatically.

"Just a little bit sweetie," Angela said, "Enough to wash the pills down. You're never going to regain your appetite if you don't try to eat something."

"You can go back to sleep once you've taken them," Booth said moving forward and holding the items out to her, "And I know your ribs are hurting so don't say you don't need them," he said pre-empting the protest he knew was going to be the next thing to come out of her mouth.

Her ribs were sore and she knew they knew it so she didn't put up much of a fight. Truth be told all she wanted to do was go back to sleep. Her body still felt exhausted and she knew it would take awhile for her to recuperate fully. She hated feeling weak and had always prided herself on her ability to go with minimal sleep so she hated the leaden feeling in her limbs that came with being completely exhausted.

She could feel the smoothie swirling around in her stomach and suppressed a groan when it twisted uncomfortably.

"Sweetie do you feel like you're going to be sick?" Angela asked worriedly.

She shook her head but didn't speak; she wasn't sure that if she opened her mouth that she would be able to stop her meal from coming back up. Her stomach growled again and she wished she could pull her legs up and curl her arms around them but her ribs stopped her from seeking comfort that way. She had to settle for placing her hands on her stomach and trying to seek comfort that way. She could actually feel it grumble beneath her fingers and closed her eyes to try and wave off the nausea that threatened to take hold.

"Bones," his soft voice made her crack her eyes open. He was closer than she expected and she flinched back at his close proximity. She could see how his face fell when she flinched and hated herself for not being able to be as close to him as she wanted. She hoped he could tell how much she wanted him near, and pleaded with her eyes for him not to go away.

"I want to try something, something I do with Parker when his stomach isn't feeling too good," Booth said.

"Okay," she said watching as he came closer, forcing herself to stay still when he sat on the side of the bed next to her.

"I'm going to have to touch you," he said staring at her seriously, "Is that okay?"

He could feel Angela's eyes on him but he looked only at his partner, waiting for her to decide whether or not it was okay for him to proceed.

"Okay," she said so quietly he wasn't even sure she had spoken. Her eyes gave her away though, he had always been able to read how she was feeling by looking into her eyes. She looked apprehensive but he could see the trust swirling below the surface. Deep down she knew he wouldn't hurt her and he was going with his gut on this one.

Moving slowly so as not to startle her he reached his hand forward and lifted her hands from where they rested on her stomach. Placing them delicately on either side of her body he lifted the material of her shirt slowly making sure his gaze didn't waver from her face at any time. He lifted it so her stomach was revealed and left it resting just below her breasts. Her breath hitched when his hands made contact with her skin and he could see Angela watching them keenly out of the corner of his eye.

"Do you want me to stop?" he asked suddenly aware himself how intimate he was being.

"No," she shook her head but he could hear her voice wavering.

"Okay, but you have to promise if it gets too much, if you're uncomfortable that you tell me and I'll stop, promise me Bones," he said his fingers hovering over her stomach.

"Promise," she nodded.

He could feel her stomach churning beneath his hands as soon as he touched her and smiled at her reassuringly as he began to rub small circles over her skin. It was something he did with his son whenever he had a stomach-ache and it always did the trick. He was gentle, conscious of the bruises that covered her pale skin and the broken ribs that lay beneath. He kept his gaze on her face, looking for signs that she wanted him to stop but she was quiet and stared back at him.

He smiled as her eyes started to droop closed, not sure whether or not it was his actions or the pain medication that was relaxing her. It didn't take long for her exhaustion to get the better of her and soon the only sound in the room was her deep, even breaths.

"That was kind of something G-Man," Angela said breaking the silence.

"It always works for Parker," Booth shrugged.

"She was afraid of you," Angela said, "But she let you do that to her."

"I'm her partner," Booth shrugged, "Deep down she knows I wouldn't hurt her."

"No," Angela shook her head, "That was something else. Something deeper than just partners. Something inside her still believes that you won't hurt her and even though her body is telling her to be afraid of you she listened to her instincts, that's a big deal for her."

"Maybe I'm rubbing off on her, she's learning to trust her gut," Booth said.

"Yeah, maybe," Angela stared at him for a second before returning her gaze to her sleeping friend, "Those meds will probably knock her out for awhile, why don't you go into her spare room and try and get some proper rest."

He started to protest but she held up her hand, "I'll be in here with her if she needs anything and I'll call you if I need help."

He hadn't realised his hands were still resting on the smooth skin of his partner's stomach and his skin felt cold as soon as he removed them. He pulled her shirt back down and situated the blanket over her, making sure she wouldn't get cold. When he was certain she was resting comfortably he said good night to the artist and went towards Brennan's guest room, making sure he left both doors open so he could hear if they needed anything.

His wristwatch was telling him it was close to two-thirty in the morning and his back rejoiced as it hit the soft mattress of the double bed. His mind swirled as he took in everything that had just happened. She had let him touch her and hadn't been shaking in fear as he did so. It was progress, even though he knew the pain medication she was on was probably partly to blame for her more relaxed state. He was counting it as progress.

Angela had been positive that Brennan had feelings for him. She was adamant that it was only the fear of rejection that stopped the anthropologist from giving in to her feelings. He so badly wanted to believe that Angela was right. It would take a little bit out of the sting he felt when he lay his heart on the line for her and had been shut down. Cam had warned him earlier in the year to make sure Brennan was ready when it came time for him to profess his feelings and he was sure it had been the right time. He thought she had given him the sign but apparently he had been wrong and his heart had been crushed when she turned him down.

He knew he couldn't give up on her now, not after everything that had happened. He was just going to have to find a way to prove to her that he was different, that he wouldn't leave her and helping her recover from her ordeal was probably the best place to start.

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**A/N: Drop me a line, let me know what you thought.**


	19. Chapter 19

His days in the army had all but stolen the ability to sleep in from him so at 6 on the dot the next morning he found himself waking with the sun. There was still a little bit of time before Brennan was due for her next round of medication so he grabbed the shirt he had discarded the night before and headed for the bathroom, intent on having a shower before anyone else woke. He was surprised when he stepped out of the room to see Angela sitting in the hallway talking quietly on her phone.

"Hold on Jack," the artist said placing her hand over the mouth piece, "Morning Booth, it's okay she's still sleeping," she said knowing what the first words out of his mouth would be.

"Any problems?" Booth asked.

"She didn't stir," Angela said, "Those meds must have knocked her out pretty hard."

"They're pretty strong," Booth said, "Cam explained it to me, something about alleviating the patient's need to move by keeping them drowsy. Seems kind of wrong to me."

"Have you ever tried to keep Temperance Brennan still?" Angela asked, "Let me tell you, without those meds we'd be having to tie her to the bed to stop her from over doing it."

"She is annoyingly stubborn," Booth said but couldn't stop himself from grinning.

"You were imagining her being tied to the bed weren't you," Angela smirked, "I knew there was a dirty side of you hidden beneath that Catholic boy exterior."

"No I wasn't!" Booth blushed, "I was thinking how I always kind of liked how stubborn she is, I mean it annoys the hell out of me but it's kind of what makes her Bones."

"What?" Angela said uncovering her hand from the earpiece, "Oh, Jack says you've got it bad."

"Does everyone know?" Booth asked incredulously.

"Oh come on Booth it's not like it was a big secret," Angela said, "I'm pretty sure even Zack knew how you two feel about each other."

Booth shook his head but smiled as he walked past, nudging her knee with his foot as he went. Apparently he hadn't been as smooth with hiding his feelings as he thought. It did make sense though; Sweets was always badgering on about how the two of them were denying some deep attraction and Cam had already known when he went to tell her about his feelings. He couldn't help himself and stuck his head into his partner's bedroom, the bedside lamp still on giving the room a warm glow.

It didn't look like she had even moved from last night but he could see from the doorway that she wasn't sleeping peacefully. The line between her eyebrows had returned and he checked his watch, wishing he could give her the medication earlier to alleviate her pain. He left the door open and headed into the bathroom, stopping short at the place where he'd had to pick his partner up from the ground the night before.

It had been shocking to see her lying there, and even worse to hear her terrified cries, screaming at Angela to get away from her. He'd been in the living room with Cam and they had been able to hear word for word exactly what she was saying. He'd waited outside the door hesitantly, wanting desperately to know what was going on but not wanting to go in and possibly make it worse. When he had finally gone in and saw her curled on the floor it had broken his heart because he'd known instantly what had happened. It was terrifying to lose yourself in a memory so completely you had no idea where you were or what had happened. It was worse when the lingering fear made your whole body tremble and you couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't.

In truth he recognised the signs of PTSD in his partner. Deep down he had recognised them from the very beginning but the part in him that wanted her to okay was stronger and stopped him from accepting what he had known all along. It was easier for him to believe that she was okay, that she would bounce back and be the same old Bones he knew and loved.

"I'm such a bastard," he muttered as he turned on the shower.

Here he was thinking that it would be easier for him if she was okay. He wasn't even the one who was suffering and he was thinking about himself. This was about her, it was always meant to be about her. Sure it might be hard to admit that maybe something was wrong but if it meant she could get the help that she needed then who was he to worry about how it was going to effect him. If he had to wait, if it took years for her to be ready for him to say how he felt again then he would wait. Because it was about her.

"Booth," the knock at the door was loud and urgent, "Booth you need to come out here."

"What's wrong?" he called turning off the shower and grabbing for the nearest towel.

"It's happening again," Angela sounded worried and Booth threw his towel on the floor pulling his pants on in a rush to get to the door, "I can't get her to calm down."

It had only been minutes since he had checked on her. What could have possibly happened in that time?

"What happened?" he asked as he threw open the door.

"After I hung up my call with Jack I went back in and it looked like she was having a nightmare," Angela said, her face stricken with worry, "She was starting to thrash around and I didn't want her to hurt herself so I put my hand on her shoulder to hold her still. She woke up and started freaking out. I can't get through to her."

"Okay, okay," Booth said, "I can try but I could make it worse."

"We need to do something, she's terrified," Angela said pulling on his arm.

The scene that greeted him when he entered the bedroom was not unlike the night before when he'd had to scoop his partner off the bathroom floor. She was curled in on herself as far as her battered body would allow and was trembling in fear. As he got closer he could hear her muttering under her breath and could see the tears running down her face.

"Bones," he said softly not wanting to startle her, "Bones it's Booth."

"You're not Booth," she replied, "You're not him. Booth wouldn't do this to me. You're not him, stop pretending to be him."

"Bones," he said taking a chance and stepping closer to the bed, "It is me, it's Booth."

"Get away from me," she said her voice shaky, "Just leave me alone. Stop pretending you're him, please just don't hurt me, please just leave me alone. Please," she sobbed.

"Oh baby," he said his heart breaking, "I'm not going to hurt you I promise."

"You're not real, you're not real, you're not real," she repeated.

"I am Bones, I am real, it's me it's Booth," he urged, "You're safe, you're home, Cam came and got you and Daisy out, you're safe."

"Daisy," Brennan said looking around suddenly, "What did you do to her? Where is she? Oh god, what did you do to her?"

"Daisy is fine sweetie," Angela joined their conversation, "She's at home with Sweets."

"What did you do?" Brennan asked her expression ragged with fear, "They did nothing wrong, they didn't deserve to die."

Her voice broke and she dissolved into tears and Booth looked at the artist as she gripped his arm.

"What do we do?" she asked him her voice strained.

"Go and get Sweets on the phone, explain to him what is going on and ask if he could bring Daisy over," Booth said calmly.

"Really?" Angela asked, "Is that going to help?"

"She can't connect this reality to the nightmare she's been living," Booth said softly, "Daisy is the only thing that she can connect reality with. If she can see Daisy and talk to her it should help convince her that this is all real."

"How do you know?" Angela asked.

"Just trust me okay," he said, "I know what I'm talking about."

There must have been something in his tone that convinced her that he was being serious and she nodded before hurrying out of the room with one backward glance at her friend. He didn't want to go into exactly why he knew what would work with Brennan; the memories of his own PTSD still haunted him and it wasn't something he liked to share with anyone.

"It'll be okay Bones," he whispered turning his attention back to his sobbing partner, "You're safe."

He managed to sit gently on the side of the bed next to her making sure that he wasn't touching her. He continued to murmur quiet assurances to her, never raising his voice but keeping it calm and steady. Her cries eventually quietened but tremors still ran through her body and she kept herself curled up as tightly as she could. He could hear her murmuring softly to herself, telling herself over and over again not to be fooled again, that he wasn't real.

He wondered what had happened, why she was adamant that they not be real. She was telling herself not to be fooled again, indicating that something had fooled her in the past. His watch beeped again, letting him know that it was time for Brennan to take some more pain medication and he looked down at his partner worriedly. He knew she must be in pain, but there was no way he could try and get her to take the meds at that moment.

"They should be nearly here," Angela said quietly sticking her head back in through the open door, "How is she?"

"Still not with us," Booth said sadly, looking down at his trembling partner.

"I called Cam and Director Hacker," Angela said, "I told them neither of us would be in at work today."

"You called Hacker?" Booth said incredulously, "How did that go down?"

"Honey I can be pretty convincing when the time comes," Angela said, "Besides as soon as I mentioned your name he guessed why I was calling and told you to take as much time as you need. Apparently you have a load of personal and sick days you have yet to use so he said not to worry about coming back in until, and I quote 'He is sure that Temperance will be okay on her own,' seems like your Deputy Director still has a soft spot for our favourite scientist."

"Thanks Ange," he said turning his attention back to his partner.

Ten minutes later he heard a knock on the door and could see the way her body tensed on the bed, as if she was waiting for something to follow. He heard shuffling in the hallway and the sound of two other voices answering Angela as she greeted them.

"It's okay now Bones," he said to her. Her mumbling had stopped but her whole body still trembled with fear.

"Agent Booth," he looked towards the door as a new voice sounded.

"Hey," he said beckoning her in; he never thought he would be glad to see Daisy Wick.

She was dressed in a simple pair of sweats and tank top and looked like she had just rolled out of bed, which made him all the more grateful that she had come. She held a glass in one hand and two pill boxes in the other and Booth smiled, glad Angela had thought ahead.

"I'm just going to be over there," he said pointing to the window, not really sure if he was speaking to his partner or her intern.

Daisy nodded and went over to the bed, placing the items on the bedside table before taking up the position he had just vacated.

"Dr. Brennan," she said quietly, "It's me, it's Daisy."

The sound of the younger woman's voice seemed to pull Brennan out of her reverie and her whole body calmed instantly, like Daisy had pulled some sort of switch.

"Daisy?" she asked trying to sit up.

"Don't sit up," Daisy said helping Brennan to resituate herself on the pillows, "It's okay, it's me."

"What did they do this time?" Brennan asked.

"Nothing," Daisy said kindly, "We're not there anymore."

"But Booth, Angela," Brennan trailed off, "They were here."

"They were," Daisy said smiling, "They're real Temperance, we got out, we're okay."

Realisation washed over her like a wave and almost immediately Booth could see the change in her demeanour. The fear disappeared from her eyes but was replaced with pain as she took in her surroundings. Apparently seeing the change as well Daisy held out the glass of smoothie and pills to her boss, smiling kindly as Brennan reached out with shaky hands to take them.

"How are you?" she asked the younger woman after she had swallowed them, taking another tentative sip of the smoothie.

"I'm okay," Daisy said suddenly quiet, "I-I keep thinking about the others. I keep seeing them."

Booth felt almost like an intruder as the two women talked. It was if they had forgotten he was even there. He felt like he should leave them be but a part of him was intrigued so he stayed still, silent in the corner.

"Did anyone?" Brennan trailed off, her face paling instantly when Daisy shook her head, "Oh," was all she said but even from the corner of the room Booth could see the anguish in her expression.

"It's not your fault," Daisy said immediately, "There was nothing you could've done."

"I could've done something," Brennan said stubbornly, "I'm sure there was a perfectly rational way."

"Temperance you know that's not true," Daisy cut her off, "Given our situation you know there was no perfectly rational way out. Those men were ruthless, there was nothing you could do."

Brennan nodded but Booth could tell she wasn't convinced. He still wasn't sure exactly what had happened but he got the feeling that there was much more to the story than he had been able to gather.

"Why don't you rest," Daisy said kindly, "Your ribs must be sore."

"Yes," Brennan nodded absently, her mind clearly elsewhere, "They are quite uncomfortable. I, uh, Daisy would you mind getting Angela for me, if she is still here."

"Of course," Daisy said standing, "Booth will keep you company while I'm gone."

Brennan's eyes flicked to him in surprise, she clearly had been unaware that he was in the room. He gave her a small smile and nodded his thanks at Daisy as she passed.

"Hey Bones," he said tentatively approaching her, "How are you feeling?"

"You're here," she said.

"In the flesh," he smiled.

Her face flushed and she turned her face away from him.

"Hey, hey," he said knowing instantly why she was embarrassed, "It's nothing to be ashamed about," he said coming closer, "Temperance look at me," he said when she still refused to meet his gaze.

It seemed like an eternity before she finally allowed herself to meet his gaze. Booth knew if she shut him out now there would be no coming back. He had witnessed his partner at her weakest and he knew that hurt her more than any physical beating ever could. Saving face was as important to her as air and if she couldn't accept that he had witnessed it then it would be even more difficult to reach her.

"It happened to me," he said when she finally met his gaze, "When I returned from my first tour, the things I had seen, the things I had done they haunted me. I would lose myself, black out, lose time and sometimes I couldn't pull myself out. Home life was so far removed from war that I would get so stuck in a memory that Rebecca had to call one of my army buddies over to pull me out because I simply couldn't accept the reality that I was home and she was real. After we found out she was pregnant she insisted that I seek help, she didn't want me around our child if I lost time, god knows what would have happened if I got caught in a flashback and had left Parker screaming in the back room. It took awhile and with the help of some of the people on the reserve I got better but it took time. I guess what I'm saying is that you don't have to be ashamed. I know what you're going through. I know how it feels so please don't ever feel like I'm going to think any less of you. Just trust me Bones, trust me and let me in because I'm here for you, like I always have been."

"Sweetie, Daisy said you asked for me," Angela said sticking her head in through the door before Brennan had a chance to reply.

"I did," Brennan said, "I, uh, I need to."

"Ok, okay" Angela said smiling understandably, "On our way I want to tell you all about what Hodgins and I got up to in Paris."

Booth stood out of the way as Angela managed to get Brennan out of bed without too much hassle. The pain meds she had taken earlier stopped the movement from being to uncomfortable and Angela supported most of her friends' weight as they made their way towards the bathroom.

"Agent Booth," his head swivelled to the doorway as Sweets' voice sounded from just outside, "Do you have a moment to talk?"

"Yeah Sweets I have a moment," he sighed, knowing he couldn't be rude to the younger man after he had come over so early in the morning.

"It's completely normal," Sweets said, "The way that she is reacting. Daisy said the dehydration and food loss caused Dr. Brennan to experience several hallucinations where she believed several of her loved ones were near."

"I know it's normal, I know what it's like," Booth said, "But thanks Sweets, for bringing Daisy and not being all obnoxious."

"It's no problem," Sweets said, "I have to go in to work today but Daisy thought she might stay around."

"Might be a good idea," Booth nodded, "If she's here the next time Bones wakes up it might help start to reacclimatise her with her apartment."

"You know, you'd make a pretty good shrink," Sweets smirked.

"You better watch out Sweets I'll be gunning for your job next," Booth said slapping the younger man heartily on the shoulder, making Sweets wince in pain.

"I'll speak to Hacker for you, try to get you some time off," Sweets said.

"Don't worry about it, apparently Hurricane Angela already sorted that out," Booth smirked.

"Excellent, well give Dr. Brennan my regards," Sweets said, "I've got to go if I want to make it to the Hoover in time but I'll be back tonight to pick Daisy up."

"Thanks again Sweets," Booth said, "Seriously, thanks."

"It's no problem, she's my friend as well, anything I can do to make this easier I'll be there," Sweets said nodding again before retreating back down the hallway.

"Booth," Angela touched his shoulder gently making him whirl around, "Bren wants to talk to you."

"Okay, thanks Ange," Booth said.

"I'm going to go and meet Jack for breakfast at the diner," Angela said, "Will you be okay without me for an hour or so? She's getting a little drowsy from the meds so it shouldn't be a problem."

"Don't worry about it," Booth smiled, "I'm here to help and if she panics about having me close then Daisy will be here as well."

"Okay, well I've told her where I'm going and I've told her that I'll be back and she knows I've got my cell on me if she needs me," Angela said.

"It's okay," Booth said pushing her down the hallway away from Brennan's bedroom, "We'll be fine, just got and see Hodgins and then come back. Maybe bring me some diner pie," he winked giving her one last shove before turning back towards his partner's bedroom.

She was lying back against the pillows and her eyes were half closed but they snapped open as soon as he walked through the door

"How are those pain meds treating you?" he asked smirking as it took her a few seconds to comprehend what he had said.

"I do not like how they slow down my brain activity," she said, "I find it difficult to think properly and I hate that they make me so tired."

"It'll help you heal," Booth said, "And getting some decent rest will do you good. You've gone years without getting as much sleep as a normal human being so it's only fair that you catch up on it now."

"I get the required amount for a functioning adult Booth," she retorted but yawned over the last word making her statement lose some of it's bite.

"Sure Bones," he said, "Angela said you asked for me."

"I want you to talk to me," Brennan said, "I think hearing your voice will be good to remind me that you're."

"Real," Booth said, "I can do that. What do you want me to talk to you about?"

"I want you to tell me what you saw, when you had flashbacks."

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**A/N: As always send me through a review, let me know what you're thinking.**


	20. Chapter 20

He sucked in a breath and averted his eyes from hers. It had been a long time since he'd told anyone about what he saw when he got sucked into his past. He'd always encouraged her to be open with him about her past but he was always guarded with his own. He gave just enough so it seemed like he was sharing but still his deepest, darkest secrets remained a mystery to her. It hit him then, the hypocrisy of his actions and it actually made him feel a little sick.

He'd never intentionally thought about it. It was his defense mechanism to brush off the pain of his past and act like it didn't matter but all the while he had been encouraging her to become more open, to get used to talking to people about the things that she would rather keep hidden. For her part Brennan had never pushed, whether it was because she hadn't realised the hypocrisy in his action she wasn't sure but she never pushed him. The closes she came was that night in Sweets' office when she had involuntarily revealed to the two men one of the horrors she had faced during her time as a foster child. foster child. Even then he had given her the bare minimum and she hadn't pushed him to reveal more.

"Booth," she said timidly breaking through his reverie.

"Sorry Bones," he shook his head, "Guess I spaced out on you a little there."

"You don't have to tell me," she looked away.

"No, no it's okay," he stuttered, "I was just thinking. I haven't thought about them in a long time."

"I felt like I lost myself," Brennan quietly averting her gaze from his.

"You're still here and you're still you Bones," he reassured her, "This thing feels like a parasite sometimes but we're all here to help. It took me the longest time to acknowledge that I needed help and I wish I hadn't wasted as much time as I did.

"Disorientating," he said simply, "I hated it, feeling like I wasn't really connected with this reality, never knowing what was going to set me off or what I was going to see."

""I am uncomfortable with ambiguity," Brennan said.

"I know you are," he nodded, "But we'll be here to bring you back."

"Where did you go?" Brennan asked him again, "I'm sorry if I'm being pushy I just need something to keep my mind of things."

"It's okay," he assured her, "I'll tell you. How is your pain? Can I get you anything before I start?"

"The drugs are already starting to dull my senses," she said, "I will be very happy when I am no longer required to take the narcotics."

"I know you hate them but they're helping," Booth said, "Are you sure you're comfortable?"

"I'm fine," the mantra she'd repeated to herself so often coming out without her even having to think about it. Showing weakness was not Temperance Brennan style and she wanted to gain some of that control back as quickly as she could.

"Okay," he said sitting on the edge of the bed, "Is this okay? I mean if I sit here?"

"Yeah," he could see her eyes were getting glassy as the pain medication began to take effect.

"When I first started having flashbacks they were always the same," he started, "You remember how I told you about Teddy Parker?"

It took her longer than usual to process what he'd said but she eventually nodded.

"Usually I flashed back to that night," he said grimly, "It was so real. I could hear the gunshot and feel his blood on my hands. It was like a movie playing in my head and it always ended the same way. He died before the chopper got to us. I wouldn't always come in at the same time. Sometimes it would start after he was already shot, sometimes I would watch him get shot and it would be the smallest thing that triggered them. A sound, a word, a poster, anything that reminded me of that place. As time went on they didn't discriminate. It wasn't always that incident that I flashed back to. I can remember one distinctly and it was always the same sound that sent me back there. As snipers we were never told much about our target. We were usually given a file with a photo and the barest of details. I took the shot and I hit my mark and I was looking down the scope of my rifle, making sure that he was really down and a woman stepped into view. She wasn't old, maybe early twenties, and she had a baby on her hip, couldn't have been more than a year old and the baby was screaming. They both had blood splattered on their faces and even though I couldn't hear it that child's cries just blasted through my head. He was just a baby and if my aim had been even a little bit off I could've killed him. From then they changed, sometimes my aim would be off and I would kill him. Sometimes I shot his mother. Rebecca used to find me crying in the corner because I was so distraught that I had killed this child," he said feeling his cheeks burn.

"Not real," Brennan murmured her eyes closed.

"They weren't real," Booth agreed, "And as soon as I convinced myself of that and got the help that I needed they started to get better."

"You make it sound easy," she said.

"It wasn't easy but it was easier with the support of others," he said, "Now you need to get some rest but before you do you need to do the breathing thing again."

"Spirometer," she supplied taking the instrument from him, "I understand the reasons behind this but I hate it."

"I know," he said sympathetically, "I've been victim to them more than once and they're not fun."

He counted for her as she held in a deep breath and looked on feeling as if he could feel the pain he knew would be burning through her chest.

"Nearly there," he said, "Just a few more seconds."

She broke off a choked out a sob her hands instantly going to cradle her ribs as if they could prevent the hurt from pulsing through her.

"You did well Bones," he said taking the spirometer that had fallen from her hands and placing it back on the bedside table. After making sure everything was arranged neatly on her bedside table he turned back to her and smiled softly at her closed eyes.

"Sleep tightly," he said pulling the blanket around her shoulders.

"I don't want to slip away again," she said looking like she was using all the willpower she had left to drag her eyes open.

"I'll be here Bones," he said, "I promise, I'll be here when you wake up."

"It didn't work last time," she said, "Angela was here and I couldn't…"

"Okay," he said looking around the room for anything that could help him, "Aha," he smiled getting up off the bed and walking over to her dresser and grabbing something off the top.

She watched him through half lidded eyes as he placed something on her bedside table and stepped away looking at her expectantly. Her eyes fought to focus on the object he had placed there and her medication fuelled brain struggled to comprehend what it meant.

"Jasper the Pig," he supplied smiling warmly at her, "When you wake up and I'm here and you can't distinguish between what's real and what's not I'm going to tell you to pick up Jasper and that way you'll know this is real."

"Okay," she said dragging her eyes open.

"Just sleep Bones," he said, "I'll be here to bring you back."

She was asleep in seconds and Booth sighed when he heard her breathing even out. Refacing his past like that had been taxing and he could feel all of the emotions he had long since buried being bought to the surface.

"It's not about you," he mumbled to himself sparing her one last glance before going out into the living area.

He had promised her he would be there when she woke up and he wasn't going to break that promise but he needed space. Seeing her in pain was worse than any of the torture he'd had to endure during his service. His cell phone rang and he picked it quickly not bothering to look at the caller ID before he did.

"Booth," he answered.

"Booth it's Cam," the pathologist said on the other end sounding harried.

"How's it going?" he asked.

"We've got a body," she said, "And the FBI has sent Perotta, Fischer is the intern of the week."

"Say no more," he grinned.

"I just wanted to check in and see how things were going," she said.

"As well as can be expected," Booth sighed, "She's had two flashbacks and they're, they're pretty fucking terrifying."

"Coming from someone who has had experience I can only imagine that is saying something."

"We had to get Sweets to bring Daisy over, she wouldn't let anyone near her. She thought we'd killed Daisy. I don't think I want to know what she saw over there," Booth said glancing back at the open bedroom door.

"But you'll have to at some point," Cam said, "You are most likely going to be the person she will confide this to and it won't do her any good if she's finally ready to share and then you run scared."

"I know," he sighed, "I just don't like thinking that someone has hurt her."

"Get over it," Cam said simply and he sucked in a surprised breath, "Someone has hurt her and there's nothing you can do about it. What you can do is help her move on and for that you need to be strong for her."

"I always knew you were worth your salt," he grinned, "Thanks Cam."

"Hey, I'm always here if you need someone to smack you back into line," he could hear the laughter in the pathologist's voice."

"No really, Camille, for bringing her back, I don't know how I'll ever be able to make it up to you."

"You don't have to," Cam said, "I care about her as well Seeley, people always tend to forget that."

"Don't call me Seeley," he chuckled, "And people know you care Cam, it just sometimes gets hidden behind that tough ex-cop exterior."

"Take care of her Seeley," Cam said, "And keep me updated."

"I will," he nodded, "Make sure Fischer doesn't scare off Perotta."

"Oh I think she can hold her own," she chuckled clicking off.

He made himself a list of jobs and set about doing them after he got a quick bite to eat. He went over her medication schedule for the day and made sure to set the alarm on his watch so he knew when she was due for her next dose. Next he went through her kitchen and prepared some small meals that would be easy on her stomach. Getting Brennan to eat would be the next hurdle they would need to overcome. Her body needed the sustenance to begin healing properly and there was no way she would receive the proper nutrition living off milkshakes and smoothies. Next he put a call in to Rebecca and let her know where he was staying in case there was an emergency and she couldn't reach him on his cell phone. His finger was hovering over the call button, contemplating whether or not he should make the next call when Angela walked in through the front door.

"Hey studly," she smiled, looking refreshed after seeing her husband.

"How was breakfast?" he asked putting his phone away.

"Normal," she supplied and he nodded, knowing exactly what she meant, "How's Bren doing?"

"Sleeping," he told her, "The drugs knocked her out again."

"That worries me a little," Angela frowned.

"Why?" Booth asked her, "They help with the pain and let her get some rest."

"That's what I'm worried about," Angela said, "So far she hasn't had to get any rest without them and I'm worried that once she stops taking them."

"She's not going to be able to sleep with out them," he filled in the gaps.

"I know what it's like to not want to close your eyes at night Booth," she said, "And from what I understand what Bren's been through far outweighs any nightmares I may ever been afraid of."

"We'll help her through it," he said resoundingly.

"That's all well and good to say, but you can't force someone to sleep," she said, "Without drugs which is what we'd be trying to avoid in the first place."

"Look Ange," he said touching her shoulder gently as he could see she was starting to get upset, "Let's not worry about something that hasn't even happened yet. It may not even be a problem. Let's focus on what we can do now instead of worrying about what might happen in the future."

"Okay," she sighed running an anxious hand through her hair, "It's just, she's my best friend and it is killing me to watch her go through all of this."

"I know the feeling, and we will help her but a very wise pathologist helped me get my head on straight earlier this morning and she told me that we have to be strong for Bones which we will," he said putting his arm around her shoulders and steering her towards the couch, "But first things first I want you to tell me all about your trip."


	21. Author's Note

A/N: To those of you out there still following this story. I know it has been a long time since I have updated but I just wanted to reassure you that I haven't abandoned it. There are no words to describe how busy I have been with placements and my last semester at uni EVER! But I only have three weeks left and I promise you that I will start updating more regularly again then. Thank you to everyone who is sticking around and who keep checking in to make sure I'm still here. I am so very grateful for you and I hope you will stick around to see what happens next.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: No your eyes aren't deceiving you I have updated! I should be able to update a little more regularly now that I'm finished with all my assessment. Thank you so much to all the readers who have stuck around during my hiatus. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

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He always marvelled at how easy it was to talk to Angela. She teased him mercilessly and loved to see him blush but when it came down to it she was a people person like he was. She shared his unique ability to read people and they viewed the world in similar ways, which made conversation easy.

"I was going to call Max," he said taking another sip of his coffee, "But I wasn't sure if Bones would want me to."

"Of course she wouldn't," Angela scoffed blowing on her cup of tea, "But that doesn't necessarily mean that not calling him is the right thing to do. When it comes to knowing what's best for her Bren is kind of hopeless."

"I don't want to add any unnecessary stress," Booth said glancing at the hallway that led to his partner's bedroom.

"He's her father Booth," Angela chided, "Don't you think he deserves to know?"

"Oh I know he does," Booth said taking another sip, "But Max Keenan has an uncanny ability of making a bad situation worse."

"You should call him," Angela said. "And while you do that I'm going to spend some time with my best friend."

"Take her some food," Booth urged getting out his cell phone, "In case she wakes up and is hungry."

He waited until Angela had got one of the meals he had prepared earlier from the fridge and disappeared down the hallway before he pressed the call button. He was half hoping that his partner's father wouldn't pick up his phone to save him the awkward conversation he knew was coming. He knew he was doing the right thing though, for all his flaws Max Keenan really loved his daughter.

"Booth?" the muffled voice on the other end of the line sounded confused.

"Yeah, hi Max," he said, "How's Hawaii?"

"Colder than I expected," was the cryptic response, "What can I do for you?"

"It's Bones."

"Tempe? What's going on? Is she okay?" Max suddenly sounded frantic.

"She was kidnapped while in Maluku," Booth said, "From what I can gather they beat her but I have a feeling that that wasn't all that happened."

"What do you mean?" Max asked.

"Daisy Wick, the intern that travelled with her, she hinted to some pretty terrible things happening."

"Those bastards. Who did this? Who did this to my Tempe?" Max asked, his voice steely and Booth suddenly got a glimpse of Max Keenan the cold-blooded killer.

"They're dead," Booth said, "Believe me I asked, but there's nothing we can do about them."

"I'll be there in the morning," Max said resolutely.

"She's been sleeping a lot," Booth said, "She's on some pretty strong pain killers and I-I'm not sure if…"

"She's my baby girl Booth," Max said, "I'm not going to overstay my welcome or get in the way. I have a place to stay in the city but I need to see her."

"I know," Booth sighed, "It-it's not easy on her at the moment but deep down I know she'll be grateful that you came."

"Thank you for calling me Booth," Max said, "I know you don't agree with many of the things I have done in the past and it means a lot that you could be the bigger man for Tempe's sake. She's lucky to have you son."

"I'll see you tomorrow Max," Booth said hanging up the phone, looking to the hallway when he heard raised voices coming from the direction of Brennan's bedroom.

Remembering what had happened the last time his partner had woken up he hurried down the hall, worried she was having another flashback.

"Brennan be reasonable," Angela said and Booth was surprised to hear that she sounded angry.

"I am being reasonable," Brennan said as he rounded the corner.

The two women were in a stand off, Angela with her arms crossed over her chest and Brennan standing on the other side of the bed, one hand gripping her bed side table.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"She needs to use the bathroom but she won't let me help her," Angela said.

"I'm not an invalid," Brennan protested, her breath starting to come out in pants, "I can go to the bathroom on my own."

"No one is saying you're an invalid," Angela said, "But you're hurt and you need some help for awhile. We've been through this sweetie. Letting someone help you every once in awhile doesn't mean you're weak."

"She's right Bones," Booth said slipping into the room.

"I didn't ask for your opinion," Brennan growled at him.

"Whoa," he said frowning, "What's with the 'tude?"

"I don't know what that means," she wheezed, trying valiantly to raise her voice, "I also don't know why you insist on speaking in ridiculous metaphors that you know I won't understand."

Her face was flushed in obvious anger and Booth stared back at her in confusion. She was clearly mad at him but for what reason he was in the dark.

"Hey," he said his face scrunched up in confusion, "Why are you so mad at me? What did I do?

"You didn't do anything Booth," she growled with as much force as she could muster, "Angela I've changed my mind, you may assist me to the bathroom."

"Okay," the artist said going over and wrapping her arm gently around her friend's shoulders, throwing a confused look over the top of Brennan's head to Booth.

He let them go past him, staring at his partner in confusion. He could hear her wheezing breaths and knew she was in pain but that wasn't his concern at the moment. She had practically seethed at him and while usually he got off on getting under her skin, this time it left him with an ill feeling in the pit of his stomach. She was mad, not annoyed, she was mad and at him, for something he wasn't sure. He didn't even know what to apologise for because he literally hadn't done anything that he thought could have made her angry at him.

"What the hell was that about?" Angela asked popping back out of the bathroom and leaning against the wall next to him.

"I don't know," he sighed, "I haven't done anything to piss her off that much."

"Well you must've done something," Angela said, "She's mad."

"I noticed," he said scrubbing a frustrated hand over his face, "I guess I'll just have to ask her again what it is I did."

"You've met my best friend right," Angela cocked an eyebrow at him, "The most stubborn woman on the planet. She's not going to tell you until she's good and ready so it's no use trying to pry it out of her."

"I'm not just going to let her stew on it either," he said.

"I'll talk to her," Angela soothed, "See what I can find out."

"Did you get her to eat?" Booth asked, "When you went in earlier, did she eat anything?"

"A little," Angela said, "Not much. Mice couldn't survive on what she ate."

"So we'll have to get her to eat some more," Booth said looking towards the closed bathroom door, "She'll need more pain meds and she can't have them on an empty stomach."

"Let me deal with that," Angela said, "God knows we don't need you to do anything more to piss her off."

"I'll get something ready for you then," Booth said as the two headed back down the hall. While he went into the kitchen he heard Angela knock on the bathroom door and enquire whether Brennan was ready.

He grabbed her pills and a glass of water and put them on the coffee table before heading back to the fridge to find something for her to eat. Angela had said she hadn't eaten much of the small meal she had brought into her earlier and he knew better than trying to force her to eat something big. He settled on some pasta, knowing the carbohydrates would do her some good and after grabbing some cutlery went to walk back towards his partner's bedroom when he stopped short, frowning as Angela came into view, her arm wrapped around his panting partner.

"She is sick of lying down in her bed," Angela said exasperatedly, obviously having already argued with Brennan over the fact.

Nodding his agreement although wanting to protest out loud he held his tongue as hit piled up the cushions on her sofa to allow her to sit at an angle that would relieve the pressure on her broken ribs.

"You're lucky I like trashy daytime TV so much Bren," Angela said gently lowering her friend into a sitting position.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan said, her face relaxing slightly as the pressure was taken off her battered body.

"It means that I'm willing to let your disregard for what's best for you slide this time because it's nearly time for _The Real Housewives of New Jersey," _Angela said settling down on the couch next to her friend and grabbing the remote, "I'm also glad I convinced you to get cable."

Booth cleared his throat and looked pointedly between Angela and the food he had placed on the coffee table. The artist smiled at him wryly before switching on the television and grabbing the food container and cutlery from the coffee table.

"Sweetie you need to eat some more before you have your pills," Angela said holding the container out to her friend.

"I won't be needing the narcotic pain pills anymore," Brennan said defiantly.

Both the artist and FBI agent sighed. They had been over this same argument every time it came time for Brennan to have her medication. They thought they were past it but apparently the anthropologist's stubbornness was not easily won over.

"You do and you will take them," Angela said sternly, "Look Bren, I get that you're used to looking after yourself and always being right but in this case you're wrong. I'm sick of arguing with you over this. I hate to see you in pain and the doctor said you will need to take them for awhile so you're going to take them. So help me god if you argue with us one more time over this I'm going to scream."

Brennan stared at her friend silently and for a moment Booth thought she was going to argue with her again but the anthropologist nodded and took the food container from Angela's hands. Her face was pale as she took a tentative bite and Booth could almost hear her stomach churning as she swallowed. Not wanting to make her uncomfortable he turned his attention to the television and out of the corner of his eye saw Angela do the same.

"This one's right up your alley Booth," the artist winked at him, "Total trash."

"Give me a Flyer's game over this rubbish any day of the week," he said crossing his arms over his chest.

They were interrupted by Brennan, who groaned and clutched at her stomach.

"Sweetie, are you going to be sick?" Angela asked worriedly looking around for a trashcan.

Brennan took a deep breath and leaned her head back against the couch. Booth was poised, ready to spring into action should she actually be sick but he relaxed when she opened her eyes and shook her head slightly, the nausea having passed.

"I think I'm done with the pasta," she said handing the container back to her best friend.

"Well you ate more than before," Angela said peeking inside the container and then placing it back on the table, taking the pills and glass of water and handing them to her friend, "That's a good start."

Brennan took the pills without hesitation and sighed as she handed the glass back to her friend.

"I'm not arguing with you because I'm trying to be difficult Ange," she said looking over at her friend, "The pills, they make me feel like I've lost control of my body. They make my head fuzzy and make me drowsy and I don't like not being able to operate at my total brain capacity."

"I know sweetie," Angela said, "But for now, let them help you recover and pretty soon you'll be operating at your total brain capacity again."

"Not if she watches anymore of this trash," Booth grumbled pointing at the television, "This stuff will melt your brain."

"Not literally," Angela interrupted before her friend could ask the question she knew was coming, "He just means it's not intelligent television."

"Nobody asked for your opinion Booth," Brennan said, "Ange if you believe this show is entertaining then there is no reason for us not to watch it."

Angela went to question her friend but stopped short when she saw Booth shake his head. There was no use pushing her on this. They had already gotten her to eat and take her medication and they would have to take that small victory for now.

"Sweetie your Dad is coming to visit," Angela said.

"You called my father?" Brennan asked incredulously looking at Angela and then turning her gaze to Booth, "No, it was you. You called him. You had no right."

"Bren it wasn't Booth, I called Max," Angela said touching her friend's arm, "He's your Dad, he deserves to know and it will be good for you to see him. Just relax, watch the trashy television and don't worry about anything for now."

It was a statement to how quickly the pain medication she was on that Brennan didn't argue with her friend. Before long her body was sinking further into the couch and she was slumped against Angela's side.

"Sweetie, why are you so angry at Booth?" Angela asked, softly running her fingers through her friend's hair.

Brennan mumbled something and shifted slightly against Angela's shoulder.

"What did he do Bren?" Angela asked again, looking at Booth who was watching them intently.

"He didn't do anything."

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**A/N: There you go first chapter back from hiatus. Hope you enjoyed. The next chapter will be a little more action packed. Let me know what you think. **


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Thank you so much for the lovely reviews I got for the last chapter. They are always so positive and encouraging and I love receiving them. Hope you enjoy this update which you will notice came a lot quicker than the last.**

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When she managed to pull herself through the foggy haze the drugs left her in she felt gentle fingers running through her hair. The familiar feeling brought her closer to consciousness and she smiled softly. Every Sunday morning she woke the same way. Her mother's fingers running through her hair and her voice whispering softly into her ear. After she got up the whole family would pack a lunch and drive two hours to her father's favourite park and they would have a picnic lunch. She and Russ would groan as her father told her proudly how he had proposed to their mother right there in the park and even though they complained about hearing the story for the thousandth time they secretly enjoyed seeing their parents as in love as they had been on the day the story took place.

"Is it time to get up Mom?" she asked struggling to open her eyes.

The fingers froze in her hair and she heard a sharp intake of breath to her side. As awareness seeped back she realised she was slumped over and resting against a soft body.

"Sweetie," a soft voice breathed sadly and she immediately pulled herself away at the voice that didn't sound anything like her mother's.

The sharp pain that raced up her side made tears spring to her eyes as she sat and looked into the warm brown eyes of her best friend.

"Ange?" she asked, "What's going on? My Mom?" she asked looking around the room that definitely wasn't her teenage self's bedroom.

"It's just me sweetie," Angela said, the pity in her eyes making Brennan avert her eyes, "We're in your apartment in DC."

She could feel it building up in her throat as the pressure built behind her eyes. She clamped her mouth shut and turned her face away from her friend; desperate to stop what she knew was coming. As soon as one sob escaped she knew that the fight was futile and let the tears run freely down her face.

"Oh honey," Angela said gathering her friend into her arms, "I'm so sorry."

She couldn't stop her sobs long enough to form words so she cried for everything she had lost, not even bothering to feel the embarrassment she knew she should at losing such control. Angela was whispering words of comfort into her ear and rubbing her back softly but it didn't stop the tears. When she had eventually cried herself out she didn't have the energy to lift herself out of her friend's embrace so she stayed slumped against Angela's side. Truth be told it felt comforting to have her friend's arms around her, even though she would be loathe to admit it.

"Why were you sorry?" she asked when she had finally got her breathing under control.

"You thought your Mom was back," Angela said, "For a second you thought she was here and then it hit you all over again that she was gone."

Brennan gasped again as her friend spoke the words and clenched her eyes shut again as a few more tears escaped. Hearing somebody else say what she had been feeling somehow made it hurt more and she sniffed, wishing she wasn't hurt so she could get up and leave like she usually would.

"I would like to have a shower," she blurted out suddenly, hoping it would give her an excuse to leave the conversation and escape the feelings she didn't want to confront again.

"Well when Booth's done in there I can help you," Angela said knowing what her friend was doing but affording her the opportunity, knowing that too much would cause her friend to shut down completely.

Booth. His name caused her heart to constrict again. She was angry at him. It was irrational and completely unfair but she was mad. The fact that her anger was irrational only served to frustrate her even more. She was Temperance Brennan, statue of rationality.

"Why are you so mad at him?" the artist asked having obviously noticed her reaction to the man's name.

"I'm not mad," she protested.

"Bren," Angela prodded.

Her reply was cut off by the opening of the bathroom door and she immediately stiffened in Angela's embrace. Her ribs protested as she tried to sit up and she groaned in frustration when Angela, instead of helping her up wrapped her arm tighter around her shoulders.

"Relax Bren," the artist said softly, "Don't hurt yourself."

"Let me up," the anthropologist said as the footsteps from the hallway got closer.

"Are you in pain?" Angela asked.

"No, but I…"

"Then you're fine where you are," Angela told her, "Booth's not going to think any less of you for leaning on a friend for a little comfort and I'm happy knowing that you're comfy and not in any pain."

"But Ange I…"

"Save it Bren," Angela said."

She struggled one last time and then gave up with a frustrated huff. She was comfortable and having Angela so close helped steal away the memories of her kidnapping that kept trying to creep into her consciousness.

"So Rip Van Winkle is finally up," Booth chuckled coming into the room.

"I don't know what that means," Brennan replied scrunching up her forehead, "But I'm assuming you're referring to my periods of unconsciousness which can be attributed to the narcotic medication I'm taking. This is why I hate taking it so much, it impairs my brain function and I despise wasting my time sleeping."

"Just look at it as catching up on all the sleep you missed over the years," Booth smiled at her, "You should be enjoying it."

"Don't tell me what to do," she snapped back at him.

"Bren," Angela frowned.

"No, it's okay Ange," Booth held up his hand, "If she's going to be mad, let her be mad at me."

"It's not okay," the artist muttered under her breath.

"Ange I would like to take that shower now," Brennan said, keeping her gaze averted.

"Ok sweetie," Angela sighed, "But for the record I don't really understand what's going on here."

By the time Brennan was showered and dressed for the night the sun was already well below the horizon. Booth had finished chopping up vegetables and was just starting on the broth from the soup he was making when he heard them come back into the living room.

"Jack's already agreed to let me paint a mural on the wall of the nursery but I'm having a hard time convincing him that a poisonous spider theme is not going to work, no matter how colourful they are," he heard Angela say.

"The Maratus Volans is delightfully coloured and performs a very impressive mating ritual in which its abdomen is raised vertically and his flaps displayed to impressive the female, much like a peacock," he heard Brennan reply.

"There is no way that my baby is going to be looking at a mural of horny spiders," Angela retorted making him chuckle.

"They're quite whimsical as they only grow to about five millimetres in length," Brennan protested, "I'm sure your child would find them quite enjoyable to look at."

"Do me a favour and don't mention that to Jack will you."

"Does vegetable soup sound alright for dinner?" Booth called from the kitchen.

"Sounds good to me," Angela called back.

She didn't manage to keep her dinner down that night and both Booth and Angela looked at each other with a mixture of sadness and disappointment over the top of her head.

"I'm sorry," she groaned in between retches.

"Sshh it's okay sweetie," Angela said as she rubbed her friend's back with one hand and held her hair back with the other.

Booth had just managed to shove a garbage can in front of her face before she started heaving and he hovered uncertainly over her shoulder as she threw up the soup she had already consumed. Both he and the artist had been pleasantly surprised when she started eating without complaint but he had watched as her face took on a decidedly green hue and only managed to shove the garbage can into her hands seconds before she started to heave.

Normally he wouldn't hesitate in touching her but he knew she was angry with him and probably didn't want his hands on her. He had meant what he said earlier. If she was going to be angry he was okay with her directing her anger at him. It gave her an outlet for her feelings which was better than her keeping them all bottled up inside.

"No more," Brennan croaked as she flopped back against the couch, "No more."

"Okay," Angela nodded as Booth took the garbage can from the anthropologist's hands, "You don't have to eat anymore for now."

"No," Brennan shook her head, "No drugs, I don't want anymore," she said as a few tears trickled down her face, "You're going to want me to take more and I don't want them."

"Bren," Angela started.

"Okay," Booth said causing both Angela and Brennan to look up at him sharply, "No more meds."

"Booth," Angela said her attention turned to the agent, "What are you doing?"

"We can't force her to take them," Booth said, "And if she thinks she doesn't need them then she's the only one who can make that decision."

"But she does need them," Angela protested.

"No," Brennan shook her head, "I don't want them."

"You may not want them but you do need them," Angela shook her head.

"If she can make it through the night without them then…" Booth trailed off.

"You're only doing this because she's mad at you," Angela exclaimed, "Stop being stupid Booth. She's in pain, she needs the meds."

"I'm not doing this because she's mad at me," he said, "But I am not going to force pills down her throat against her will. This is her decision Angela, no one is going to make it for her, I'm not going to take the choice away."

Angela stared at him for a moment before finally nodding. They both understood how important the notion of control was for their friend, even more so after her kidnapping. While they did not approve of her decision ultimately it was hers to make.

"If she can make it through the night then we'll talk about it again," Angela nodded.

Brennan's chest shuddered as she tried to get her breathing back under control. The exertion from throwing up her dinner had made her broken ribs burn excruciatingly and left her feeling breathless. The three fell into silence, Booth leaving to empty the garbage can and return with a glass of water which he handed to her. He and Angela returned to their soup, staring at the television as they ate. Brennan's attention was turned only to the pain that burned deep in her chest. She listed the bones of the body in her head, trying to keep her mind off the pain, pain that could be easily fixed if she gave in and took the medication.

She was so focused on keeping her mind busy she didn't even realise they'd been speaking to her until Angela touched her arm softly.

"What?" she asked turning to face her friend.

"I said it's time for you to use that breathing thing again," Angela said as Booth returned to the room. She hadn't even noticed he'd left.

"Remember to breathe deeply Bones," he said handing her the spirometer.

"I know what I'm doing Booth," she snarled snatching it from his hand.

"Sweetie are you sure you don't want to take any pain medication before you do this," Angela asked, her face showing her clear concern.

"I'm fine Angela," Brennan replied before she began the exercise.

She regretted her decision immediately as she breathed in deeply, the pain causing spots to dance in front of her eyes. She reached out automatically and grabbed the first thing she could find. She knew she had grabbed his hand but somehow couldn't let go, needing something to keep her anchored and keep her from floating into oblivion as pain threatened to overtake her whole being.

On his part Booth squeezed back, not saying anything as she completed the exercise. When she was done she collapsed back against the couch, his hand still held tightly in her grasp. Her eyes clenched firmly shut she jumps slightly when soft hands place cold ice packs against her side. Cracking her eyes open she sees the concerned eyes of her best friend looking back at her and through her gaze she can tell what Angela is begging her to do but she shakes her head in response making Angela sigh in disappointment.

Angela's cell phone rings making them all jump a little and the artist looks away as she answers. For her part Brennan is relieved that the artist's attention is pulled from her and she takes the opportunity to let a little pained filled whimper escape. His thumb starts caressing the back of her hand softly and she is reminded that she is gripping it tightly. She's pulls hers back almost as if she's been burned and has the decency to look a little ashamed when she catches the hurt look that crosses his features.

"That was Jack," Angela said coming back from the kitchen, "He was just checking up on you."

"And you," Brennan said, "You should go home Ange, you're pregnant and newly married. You shouldn't be stuck here babysitting me."

"First off I'm not stuck anywhere," Angela said, "Secondly you're my best friend sweetie and it's part of the best friend code that I'm here to look after you."

"I'm not aware of such code but I'm sure Dr. Hodgins misses you. I will be fine here tonight," Brennan assured her.

"I'll be with her," Booth said, "If we need anything we'll call."

"Are you sure?" Angela asked still unconvinced.

"I'm sure, you should go home Ange," Brennan said.

"I will be back in the morning," Angela promised, "Take care of yourself sweetie," she said leaning down to give her friend a hug, "And don't be stubborn. If you need the meds, take them."

"I'll see you tomorrow Ange," Brennan said watching as Booth led the artist to the door. She could tell that the two had a short conversation and was positive that it was about her but couldn't quite make out what they were saying. The artist hugged Booth quickly and kissed his cheek before giving her best friend one more pointed look and then she was gone and it was just the two of them.

"You ready for bed Bones?" he asks as he turns back to face the anthropologist.

"I want to watch this," she indicates the television.

"You want to watch, what is that? Legally Blonde? Come on Bones, I know you don't want to watch that," he said incredulously.

"You don't know what I want to do Agent Booth," she snapped back, crossing her arms over her chest in irritation, wincing loudly when the action pulled at her broken ribs.

"That's fine Bones," he shrugged, "You can be pissed at me that's fine but you should know that I'm not going anywhere no matter how angry you get. In fact I'm going to sit down right here next to you and enjoy this movie that I just know is going to drive you insane but you'll be too stubborn to admit you don't want to watch."

She made him watch Legally Blonde and it's sequel. The woman drove him insane. It was well past midnight and she was struggling to keep her eyes open but she wouldn't give in. He knew she was doing it to frustrate him. But he was just as stubborn as she was. It was only when he saw her head bob a few times that he couldn't hold his tongue any longer.

"Time for bed Bones," he said softly.

"No, I'm not ready yet," she said, her words slurring together sleepily, "I wanna watch the end of the movie."

"Bones you're eyes aren't even open," he chuckled.

"They are," she protested.

"Tell me what's on the screen right now."

"Something pink," she said her eyes still closed.

"Lucky guess," he muttered.

She was asleep five minutes later, her head pillowed against his shoulder. He turned down the volume on the television content to just listen to the small noises she made in her sleep. When she started to snore softly he smiled to himself, feeling privileged that she felt so comfortable in his presence to be so relaxed, despite her injuries and lack of medication.

"Come on sleepy Bones," he said turning the television off.

"Booth," she murmured, "You're here."

"Yeah Bones I'm here," he said softly.

She pulled away from him suddenly and he looked at her in surprise. He wondered when she had woken up. He didn't have long to ponder because the next thing he knew she was kissing him.

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**A/N: Cliffhangers are mean but also a must, if only to make sure you wonderful people stick around for the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed. Send me through a review and let me know what you thought.**


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: Thanks so much for the great response to the last chapter. I got so excited when the alerts popped up in my inbox. I'm so grateful people are actually reading and enjoying this story.**

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Her lips were soft against his and he got over the shock quickly, pulling her closer to him as their kiss grew more insistent. He was so lost in the feeling of her against him that his brain ceased to function beyond the utter feeling of completeness of kissing her. Had he been thinking rationally he would've realised how out of character it was for her to be kissing him, especially considering that hours before she had been angry with him. When they finally had to part to take a breath she rested her forehead against his.

"I promise if I get home I'm going to tell you the truth," she said breathlessly.

"You are home," he chuckled, his heart beating furiously in his chest, still caught up in the feel, touch and taste of her on his lips.

"Bones," he pulled back when she didn't reply, "You are home."

His stomach came up into this throat when he caught a look at her face and for a minute he thought this time he was going to throw up. Her eyes were glassy and she was focusing on something over his left shoulder. While she was moving and talking to him, he knew she wasn't aware of her actions.

"I knew it was a mistake," she was still speaking, "But I was afraid so I turned you down."

He knew he should wake her up. If she was aware of what she was revealing to him he knew she would be appalled but his hand was stalled inches from her shoulder, unable to move in fear that he would miss the words he'd been longing to hear.

"I promise when I get back I'll talk to you," she continued, "The real you."

"Are you still afraid?" he asked softly, not really expecting an answer.

"Terrified," she whispered back, "But you're worth the risk."

His heart skipped a beat at her words and before he knew it it was him who was lunging forward and capturing her lips with his own. All concept of right and wrong disappeared from his mind as he pulled her in closer to deepen their kiss. She tasted sweet against his lips and he groaned as she parted her lips to allow him greater access to her mouth. It wasn't the first time they had kissed. Alcohol and puckish attorney's had seen to that. This kiss felt different. She had basically said everything he had ever wanted to hear her say and it made his heart pound pleasantly in his chest.

"Come and save me Booth," she gasped when they finally had to part to take a breath.

Reality smashed back into him like a steam train at her words and he pulled away turning his head away from her. Shame flooded through him and he closed his eyes in utter disillusionment. She wasn't aware of what she was saying, she wasn't even aware of where she was and he had taken advantage of her. How could he ever forgive himself for that? She had once asked him if he was going to betray her and he had just proved himself to be a liar.

Taking advantage of her like that was probably the worst betrayal he could have ever committed.

Only she wasn't aware she had been betrayed by the one person who had sworn to never do such a thing. She was still in his arms with her resting in the crook of his neck and he could feel her fingers stroking his back through the fabric of his t-shirt. He nearly lost it again at the feel of her fingertips against his body but he managed to hold himself together and whisper in her ear like nothing was wrong.

"Time for you to be in bed Bones," he said softly.

"I don't want to leave you," she said into his chest, "I know when I wake up you'll be gone."

"I won't be gone," he said, "I'll be right here, I promise."

"You can't promise that," she said shaking her head, "You can't be certain about anything."

"I guess you'll just have to have faith then," he said lifting her into his arms.

"I don't need faith Booth," she said resting her head against his shoulder, "I have evidence that you won't let me down."

She pressed her lips to his neck then and he shuddered as she settled against him, her breathing evening out as sleep overcame her again just as they entered her bedroom.

He placed her gently down on her bed, arranging the pillows around her so her torso was supported and no strain would be put on her ribs. He made sure she was tucked in and that Jasper the pig was clearly visible on her nightstand before he went to leave, turning off the main light but leaving on the small lamp that sat on her dresser which cast the room in a yellow glow.

She was beautiful. Despite the bandage of her forehead and the bruises on her cheek, she was still the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. And he had ruined any chance he'd ever have with her. How could he even look her in the face now when he'd taken advantage of her?

Sighing Booth stepped quietly from her bedroom and made his way into the guest room where his things were. Flopping down on the bed he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to forget just how perfect it felt to hold her so close and have her lips pressed against his. It had been her words that had spurred him into action, the words he had always wanted to hear pass through her lips. Words that she probably wouldn't even remember in the morning.

"What have I done?" he groaned flipping over so he was lying on his side.

He set the alarm on his watch before switching off the light and plunging the room into darkness. In the darkness he found it harder to stop the memories of the kiss from invading his mind and he groaned again. He needed something to take his mind of it.

Max.

Her father was coming over tomorrow.

That seemed to work. Now all he had to worry about was how he was going to be able to pull it together in front of her intuitive father.

Sighing he closed his eyes, hoping he would be able to get a few hours of sleep before it was time for Brennan to take her next dose of medicine.

Next thing he knew he was sitting bolt upright in his bed his hand scrambling on the bedside table where he kept his gun. He wasn't sure what had woken him but he looked around the room quickly, gun stretched out in front of him, looking for whatever it was.

He heard a bump in the hallway and was on his feet in a second, his gun still held at the ready. Thankful for his years as a sniper he crossed the floor of the bedroom silently, his feet seeming to barely ghost over the hardwood floors as he reached the door.

His reflexes were still sharp and he scanned the area, his gun dropping to his side immediately when he found the source of the noise.

"Oh baby," he said dropping to his knees next to where she had crumpled to the floor, "What are you doing out here?"

All earlier thoughts of guilt disappeared when she raised her head to look at him, the tears staining her cheek shining in the moonlight that filtered in through the window.

"I didn't know where you were," she said gasping, "I thought you were gone and that I was…"

_Alone, _he shuddered. She thought he had left her.

"Hey, I told you I was going to be here for you and I meant it," he said.

"I'm being silly," she said, "I apologise."

"Bones, you have _nothing _to be sorry for," he said vehemently, "Come on, let's get you off the floor and back to bed."

He lifted her as gently as he could but she still groaned at the movement. He only hoped that her fall hadn't exacerbated any of her injuries. The thought of her crawling on the floor of her apartment, checking to see if the people in her life had abandoned her again like she expected they would hit him suddenly as he carried her back to her room. It was just so heart breaking, how she clung onto the idea that everyone would eventually leave her. How she had gotten used to the idea after years of practice and yet how she so desperately she didn't want to be alone, despite the shield of indifference she tried to project.

"Booth?" she gasped.

"Yeah Bones?"

"Why are you crying?" she asked.

He looked down at her sharply, registering the droplets of liquid on the skin of her arm as he carried her into her bedroom. He hadn't realised he had been crying but as soon as she mentioned it he could feel the warm trail of tears on his cheeks.

"It's nothing Bones," he said thickly, "I've just got something in my eye."

"You're lying," she said, "You feel sorry for me, well I don't want your pity Booth. You can put me down. I can walk. Put me down."

"You're right," he said refusing to put her down, "I do feel sorry for you," he ignored the strangled sound that came from her throat, "But I don't pity you. I respect you Bones more than you know but what you've been through, not just the kidnapping but everything else that has happened to you, you don't deserve what people have done to you. You are the strongest person I know Bones and the fact that you have come through all of that stronger than ever, well not many people would have been able to do that. So yes, I feel sorry for you but it will never be pity that you will get from me, only respect."

Tears were trickling down her cheeks by then, joining his and for a moment they simply cried in silence, for all the injustices she had had to face. She was still held in his arms and as he sank to sit on her bed she turned her face and buried it in his shoulder. He in turn buried his face in her hair, inhaling the sweet scent that was distinctly her. They sat like this in silence for how long he couldn't be sure, her body trembling slightly against his until the beeping of his watch interrupted the silence.

Reluctantly he pulled his face away from hers and moved to remove her from his lap.

"No," her half strangled cry tore at his heart, "Don't go."

"I'm not going anywhere Bones, it's time for your next dose so I have to go and get your pills."

"No," she shook her head, "You said I didn't have to take them if I didn't need them."

"You must be in pain Bones, you fell…" he trailed off trying to extricate himself from her grasp.

"No!" she shouted, "Don't, don't leave me," her voice lost all it's strength, "Please don't leave me."

"Oh baby," he found himself saying for the second time that night, "I'm not leaving you but if you're in pain you _need_ to take the medication."

He didn't have time to think about the implications of the earlier kiss or what he had called her because clingy Bones was slightly more terrifying than a Bones who couldn't recognise where she was. A clingy Bones was so out of character that it only fortified how much damage those bastards who took her had done.

"It does hurt," she gasped, "It does."

"Okay, that's okay," he said standing up with her in his arms once more, "We'll go and get the pills together then. I'm sure Sweets would say it was team bonding or something, good for our partnership."

She laughed weakly into his shoulder and he smiled, revelling in the fact that she could still find it within herself to muster up a smile. They were closer in the following minutes than he thought they had ever been.

With her in his arms he somehow managed to dispense the correct medication and get her to swallow, using one of the smoothies they had kept in the fridge. He spoke to her through the whole process, mindless conversation about nothing at all but seemed to help her relax. She still had her arms wrapped tightly around his neck but she wasn't shaking anymore, seemed content to know that he wasn't going to leave her.

"Alright Bones it's off to bed with you," he said.

"No," she protested, "I don't want to go back in there, not yet. I feel like I haven't been outside for months. Can, do you think we can sit outside? Just for a little while?"

"Of course," he nodded, understanding her need.

It was difficult but he managed to unlock the door to her balcony without dropping her. He didn't even try to put her down this time, sensing that somehow she was still longing for the comfort of knowing someone was near and that she wasn't alone.

She had a simple outdoor setting, a small square glass table and two chairs that had cushy black pillows on them that were much more comfortable than they looked. It was still dark outside, the lights of the city looked magical as he sunk down into one of the chairs, smiling as she sighed in content as she settled against his body. His arms wrapped of their own volition around her and he rested his chin on the top of her head.

"You can't see your place from here," she said softly.

"You've tried?" he asked.

"When the Gravedigger took me, after you brought me back here I couldn't stay inside, so I sat out here all night."

"I told you to let me stay."

"I wanted to be alone," she said tracing her fingers along the tattoos on his wrist, "As I sat out here I kept remembering what it felt like in that car, I kept expecting her to be there when I turned around so I needed something, anything to take my mind of it."

"Bones…"

"You were naturally the first thing that came to mind."

"Bones…"

"Because I had just seen you of course," she said hurriedly ignoring him, "So I tried to find your apartment. It took my mind off everything, I kept trying, using different methods of deduction and suddenly I felt safe. It's hard to describe why, but I did."

"Bones…"

"Sometimes I still sit out here," she said her words starting to slur together as the medication began to take effect, "Whenever I feel the urge to run away, if I'm feeling trapped by elements which are out of my control."

"I go to the roof of my apartment," he said, "Whenever I feel like I need to take a holiday and never return. It's like gaining a whole new perspective, feeling the hugeness of the city around you."

"A sense of freedom," she nodded, sighing, "I don't want to close my eyes."

"I'll be here when you wake up," he assured her, "I promise, just rest."

"I don't want to go inside," she mumbled, "I want to stay out here, with you."

"We'll stay out here," he nodded, "Just sleep Bones, heal."

She was quiet then and he thought she had fallen asleep but she spoke again, making him jump.

"My Dad."

"He'll be here later on," he said, "If you really don't want to see him you don't have to."

"I do," she said, "I do want to see him, I don't know why."

"He's family," Booth said.

"You're my family too Booth," she said her fingers taking hold of his wrist.

"And you mine," he said kissing the top of her head, "Sleep Bones, I'll be here tomorrow."

She relaxed against him then, her body no longer able to fight off the drugs that wanted her to rest. Her head rested in the crook of his neck and her fingers still wrapped around his wrist she slept peacefully for the time being and he was grateful for that but with her fitted so perfectly against him he had never felt more conflicted.

Should he tell her? That in one of her most vulnerable moments that he had taken advantage of her, been too caught up in his own feelings to respect that she wasn't ready to reveal hers.

Should he not? Keep it to himself and wait, hoping that she find the courage and do what she promised in her dreams that she would.

Sitting with her like this, with her steady breaths warm on his neck felt pretty close to perfect and he wasn't sure he was ready to give that up but could he live with himself, with the knowledge of what he had done? What would it do to them if she ever found out? Would she blame him? Or would she understand? Could she rationalise his actions and make sense of them? Or would she see it as a betrayal, be so overwhelmed with what she had revealed unawares that she would hide, back in the shell she had hidden behind for so long.

He kept his promise. They stayed out there the rest of the night. He listened to the noises she made as she slept, memorised the way she sounded as she murmured nonsense as she dreamed, and smiled to himself when she began to snore softly, For some reason coming from her they sounded endearing and it only served to make him love her more.

He imagined he felt like she often did. His mind awash with thoughts, never resting. So caught up with questions of right and wrong he didn't hear the door to her balcony open, or the footsteps that followed. His only indication that they weren't alone was the hand that came to rest on his shoulder.

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**A/N: Thanks for reading the newest chapter. Hope you enjoyed. I am away for the holidays so it may be up to two weeks before a new update will be posted. Wishing all of my lovely readers and reviewers a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.**


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. As my present to you I present you with a new chapter. Hope you enjoy.**

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His grasp tightened around her and he was out of his chair in seconds, whirling around to face the intruder with Brennan still in his arms. His thoughts were racing. There was nowhere to go; no way he could safely shield Brennan from their assailant. Adrenalin started to kick in and a plan began to formulate when a voice interrupted his frenzied thoughts.

"Booth, sorry I'm early."

"Max," Booth breathed his heart rate slowing considerably.

"What are you two doing out here?" Max asked curiously.

"Bones didn't want to stay inside," he answered, "Wait, how'd you get in? The door was locked."

"I used to rob banks Booth," Max said looking slightly chagrined, "Locks were never a problem for me."

Booth made a mental note to convince Brennan to invest in a stronger security system.

"How is she?" Max asked moving closer to the man who held his daughter.

"She's still in pain," Booth said, "And she's showing some signs of PTSD," he said sadly.

"Oh my poor baby," Max said running his fingertips over the bandage on his daughter's forehead, "Oh my poor Tempe."

"She has been able to keep some food down," Booth said, "Not a lot, but some which is a start."

Max cut him a sharp look then and Booth could tell what he was thinking. Being able to keep food down was not usually considered an accomplishment and the fact that he had used it to reassure her father only worried the older man more.

"Why don't we go inside," Max said, "We can talk some more and I can cook us some breakfast."

Booth nodded and followed the older man back inside the apartment. When Max headed towards the kitchen Booth followed, shifting Brennan slightly in his arms as he went.

"You can put her down on the couch while we talk Booth," Max raised his eyebrow at the younger man.

"No, I, she, she doesn't want to be alone," Booth stuttered flushing slightly under the older man's knowing gaze.

"Well why don't you go and sit on the couch with her and I'll bring breakfast over when it's done," Max said.

"There's some already made meals for her in the fridge," Booth said.

"I'm in the mood for something that would make my cardiologist very unhappy," Max said, "Relax son, I'll bring it over when I'm done."

He didn't know why it felt wrong to be leaving his partner's father alone in her kitchen. He knew that her relationship with the man who had abandoned her and her brother as teenagers was improving but there was still some unresolved tension there that would probably never fully dissipate.

He settled them on the couch with her head resting comfortably in his lap. She appeared to still be sleeping soundly, the medication no doubt helping to help her with this much-needed rest. His fingers began to stroke her hair as he rested his head against the back of the couch. His own lack of sleep was beginning to catch up with him and his eyes felt gritty. As much as he tried he couldn't keep his eyelids from drifting shut as he gave into his exhaustion.

He could tell he was dreaming the moment he saw her. Her hair was longer than it had been for a few years and the watch she wore on her left wrist was made of silver instead of the black plastic one she had been wearing lately. The black plastic she now wore was a gift from his son before she had left for Maluku and included a GPS function which Parker thought would help Brennan if she got lost and couldn't find her way back to Washington.

"I'm glad you convinced me to come," she laughed dropping down onto the picnic rug he was lounging on, "It has been a very pleasant day."

"I couldn't let you stay cooped up inside with some old dead guy when the weather looks like this Bones," he indicated the clear blue sky, smiling back at her warmly.

"It is unusually warm for this time of year," she looked up at the sky quizzically.

"Well we are in a desert Bones," he chuckled sifting his fingers through the sand that suddenly surrounded them, "What did you expect?"

"Some desert areas are known to drop below freezing after nightfall Booth," she scowled causing him to laugh more and drop down to lie on his back, hands folded beneath his head comfortably.

"Stop correcting me and just enjoy the sunshine," he said closing his eyes in content. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt this relaxed.

His eyes shot open at her first scream, looking around in confusion before finally spotting her. Two heavily armed insurgents were dragging her away from their picnic rug. She was struggling against their grips but he could see the stark terror in her eyes as she screamed. She seemed to be trying to scream something at him but he couldn't quite make it out.

"Bones," he called to her, "Hold on I'm coming."

"Jackson," she screamed back at him, "No, Jackson."

"I don't understand," he called back scrambling after the men who had her, "Just hold on."

"Jackson," she screamed again, "Jackson."

A sharp pain in his stomach pulled him back into reality and Booth had barely opened his eyes before he had to dodge the flailing limbs of his partner as she struggled in her sleep.

"Jackson," she screamed again and the absolute fear and devastation he heard in her tone was enough to shake the groggy feeling he had encountered when first awakening.

"Tempe," Max's frantic voice fought to be heard over her screams, "Tempe you're okay baby."

The older man still held a spatula in his hands having obviously rushed over from where he had been cooking breakfast when his daughter had first started screaming. Booth grunted again when one of her elbows connected with his stomach and wrapped his arms around her shoulders the best he could, more concerned that she would hurt herself in her frantic struggle.

"Max," Booth said calmly, "Find Bones' cell phone and call Daisy Wick. If she doesn't pick up then call Lance Sweets and ask to speak to Daisy."

"I want to be helping my daughter Booth," Max growled, "Not making your phone calls for you."

"You will be helping your daughter," Booth said sliding out from under Brennan's body and sitting on the floor next to the couch, not touching her but staying close to make sure she didn't fall off as she struggled against her dream.

Max recognised the intensity in the younger man's tone and stared at his daughter, grief evident in his glance before he turned and headed into the kitchen to find the phone.

"It's okay Bones," Booth whispered once Max was gone, "You're okay, you're safe and you need to wake up. Don't be scared but you need to wake up, for me."

Her struggling had stopped but she still whimpered quietly, her fists bunched at her sides. He continued to speak to her, watching her face closely for any signs that she was waking. Her eyes opened slowly and she sat up quickly, wincing loudly when it pulled at her broken ribs.

"Hey, hey, easy," he said reaching his arms out to help her but stopping short when he realised she may not want to be touched at the moment.

She held herself rigidly, looking like she was ready to spring off the couch at any moment. He could see the distrust in her gaze as she took in her apartment as well as him as he sat on the floor. She didn't believe what she was seeing, that much was clear.

"You're at home Bones," he said, "Cam came and got you and Daisy. You're in Washington. You're safe. Do you remember?"

He thought he saw recognition in her eyes as she stared at him but it was soon replaced with a steely contempt.

"Don't lie to me," she hissed, "What did you do to them?"

"Bones," he said, "It's Booth," he said reaching for her hand.

"Don't touch me," she screeched as Max walked back into the room, cell phone in his hand.

"Okay, it's okay," Booth held out his hands placatingly, "Daisy is on the phone, she'll explain what's going on."

"What did you do to Daisy?" she asked looking around frantically, "Where is she? What did you do?"

"She's fine, Daisy's fine," Booth said, "Just take the phone, talk to her, you'll see everything is okay."

Max held the phone out to his daughter tentatively; looking at her with so much concern that Booth almost forgot how much pain the older man had put his partner through in the past.

She took the phone from him eventually and put it up to her ear, not letting her gaze waver from the two men in front of her. They couldn't hear what was being said to her but realisation gradually passed over her face in a wave. She said goodbye quietly and dropped the phone to the couch. He longed to reach out to her as she struggled to stand from the couch but knew her well enough to know when to give her some space.

"Tempe," her father either didn't know her well enough or couldn't stand to see her struggle, "Let me help you up."

"I fine," she said through gritted teeth, finally managing to get herself off the couch, "I would like to be by myself for awhile. I have work to do on my novel."

"Bones…" Booth trailed off as she turned her gaze to him.

"No," she glared, her anger having obviously returned, "I don't need _your _help. I am fine."

The abrupt change in attitude hit him square in the face and he was left stunned as she walked away down the hall. He didn't turn away until he heard a door slam somewhere deep in the apartment.

"Why the hell wasn't I told it was this bad?" Max was in his face when he turned back around.

"It happened so quickly," Booth said, "There wasn't time."

"That's my daughter," Max seethed, "What the hell happened to her Booth?"

"I don't know," Booth sighed, deflating, "I only know bits and pieces. Some I gathered from her injuries, others from her nightmares and flashbacks. She hasn't really said anything about it and I'm not going to push her to just yet."

"Who the hell is Jackson?" Max asked.

"I don't know," Booth said again running a frustrated hand through his hair.

"I'm going to talk to her," Max pushed his way past the younger man.

"No!" Booth called, grabbing him by the shoulder and spinning him back around, "Don't, not just yet."

"She's my baby girl Booth, I'm not going to just let her suffer alone."

"She's embarrassed and angry," Booth said, "She will be humiliated that she let you see her like that and angry that I let you. Just give her some time."

"Fine," Max sighed, "But in the meantime you're going to tell me everything that went down."

* * *

Her legs threatened to give out from underneath as soon as she slammed the door to her bedroom closed. It had been agony to walk as quickly as she had away from the men in her living room but she had been determined to keep her back straight as she'd left them. The breath she released was more of a sob and she couldn't stop the one that followed.

She dealt with death on a daily basis and yet the image of Jackson's dead body made her feel sick to her stomach. She nearly made it over to her bed before her legs decided they had had enough and she slid to the floor, gasping out loud as her broken ribs screamed at the pressure. With no pillows to take the pressure off she turned to lay on her back, the gasping sobs that escaped her making it hard to breath but in this position at least she felt some relief.

She had known her father was coming over and yet to know that he had seen her like that made her cheeks burn in humiliation. She was also angry, so angry at Booth and while she knew her anger was irrational it didn't stop the seething thoughts when she pictured her partner.

There was no excuse to be lying there on her bedroom floor crying she tried to tell herself but the tears just kept coming. Jackson's lifeless eyes had taunted her in her dream as he told her all the things he wouldn't get to do now because she had killed him. The guilt was worse than the pain. The guilt clawed at her stomach and made her nauseous. She couldn't escape them. When she closed her eyes it was their dead, empty faces that she saw, their accusing voices that she heard. She was frantic, desperate to rid herself of their accusations so she pressed her hands against her injured side, hoping that the physical pain would be enough to allow her to compartmentalise.

She saw stars as soon as her hands had applied pressure to her side and cried out as her body spasmed against the pain. She held her breath, hoping they hadn't heard her and breathed again only when her bedroom door remained closed. Her side burned but it seemed to have done the trick. Her mind was focused on blocking out the pain that radiated from the site she had pressed upon. Her forehead beaded with sweat as she fought to control the tears that ran down her cheeks.

She began to name the Bones of the body, starting with the largest. Bones were comforting and familiar and she found that as she concentrated on getting through the list her breathing began to return to normal and her tears slowed to a gradual stop. By the time she had gotten to the smallest, the stapes in the middle year, her tears had stopped completely, the tracks left on her cheeks feeling tight as they started to dry.

Her ribs still felt tender and she groaned as she collapsed back onto the floor after having tried to stand up. She knew what the easiest option would be. Booth would be by her side in an instant if she called to him but she didn't want his help. She felt ridiculous, trapped, lying on her own bedroom floor with a solution so easily within reach, but she had been humiliated enough today without letting him see this new low.

_Soon_ she thought to herself. _In a couple of minutes I'll be able to get up._

So she waited.

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**A/N: I'd say I was sorry for leaving you with a cliffhanger but I'm really not. You guys always come back for more and leave incredible reviews when I do (hint hint). Hope you enjoyed this next instalment. In the next chapter we may just learn why Brennan is so angry at Booth.**


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: I apologise for the excessively long hiatus this story has taken. I'm coming up on holidays and I'm hoping to get this one finished. Thanks to everyone who has sent me subtle hints that they were waiting on new chapters. Hope you still stick around till the end.**

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The tension in the living room was palpable. While both men ate their breakfast in silence what was going unsaid spoke volumes. It had been twenty minutes since she had shut herself off in her bedroom and Booth had spent the whole time fighting the urge to rip down her door and go to her.

He could tell her father was having the same problem. The older man's face was tight with worry and his eyes flicked to the hallway where his daughter had disappeared to after nearly every bite he took. After Booth had shared what little information he had about what had happened to Brennan while she had been kidnapped Max had moved silently to the kitchen and gotten them both plates of the breakfast he had been cooking earlier.

"Maybe you should go," Booth said quietly, leaning forward to put his plate on her coffee table.

"What do you mean?" Max asked, fixing his glare on Booth, "My daughter is hurting Booth, she needs me."

"What she needs is to feel in control," Booth said running his hands over his face, "And she doesn't need you here stirring up old emotions."

"She needs her father," Max argued.

"Look Max," Booth sighed, "I get it, okay, I get it. You want to help her, hell we all want to help her, but there is only so much we can do for her right now. She's dealing with a lot and you being here maybe wasn't such a good idea."

Max pressed his lips into a thin line and bunched his hands into fists at his side.

"She's my little girl Booth," he said quietly after a while.

"I know," Booth said sadly, "And if it makes you feel better she said earlier that she wanted to see you but I think she would feel better if she was feeling a little more in control when she did so."

"You know," Max chuckled, "She gets her stubbornness from her mother. When she was a little girl, about two or three, she began to have nightmares. She'd wake up in the middle of the night shouting and of course we'd always go running to her. When we would get to her room she'd be trying so hard not to cry. I can still see her sitting there trembling and looking so small in her big girl bed. She would refuse to tell us what was wrong though, insisting that she wasn't afraid. Her mother thought it would be a good idea to get her a stuffed toy, something she could hug in the middle of the night but she refused to use it. She was so sure that she could handle her nightmares on her own that she wouldn't even accept a stuffed toy at two years old."

"That sounds like Bones," Booth laughed.

"You call me," Max insisted as he stood, "Everyday or I will be back and as soon as Tempe wants to see me I will be here. And if you think for a second she wants or needs me and she isn't admitting it then you call me or I swear to God Booth you will wish that I had stayed hidden."

Booth wasn't stupid. He knew that Max was a dangerous man and if he had wanted he could make life very uncomfortable. It would be a mistake to underestimate what Max would do to protect his daughter even if his views of right and wrong might be a little skewed.

"I will, I promise," Booth said ushering him towards the door, "She will be grateful that you were here," he assured him, "But thinking about it now it's not the right time."

"Look after her Booth," Max said clapping the younger man on the shoulder, "She's relying on you."

"I will, I promise," Booth said shaking the older man's hand before seeing him to the door.

The apartment suddenly felt smaller without the other man's presence and Booth moved immediately to their plates that were sitting on the coffee table. He needed to keep busy because he knew if he sat around doing nothing he wouldn't be strong enough and would burst through her door without hesitation. Moving to the kitchen he contemplated stacking the dishes into her dishwasher but he could hear his partner's many lectures on water conservation in his head so he smiled softly to himself as he stacked them in the sink and searched for her dish washing liquid.

He was still struggling to wrap his head around what his partner had suffered through and was still struggling with. The guilt he felt over their earlier kiss was still sitting heavily in his stomach as he began to scrub the grease off the frying pan Max had used to cook breakfast. While many perceived Brennan to be cold hearted he knew that his partner actually felt more than most and simply didn't know how to deal with this in a way most felt was socially acceptable. To Brennan being logical and straightforward was a way to guard her heart from being hurt and he feared that by revealing to her that he had kissed her in a moment of weakness while she was caught in a flashback would only serve to close her heart off even more.

Lost in his own thoughts it took him a while to pick up on the sounds coming from down the hallway. It was only when he moved to stack the now clean plates in the drying rack that sat next to the sink that he caught the moans coming from her bedroom. Dropping the sponge in the sink he paused, wondering for a second if he was imagining things before another low moan caught his attention.

"Booth," the moan sounded, low and urgent from the direction of her bedroom.

He's glad that the dishes he had been washing were not still in his hands because he was sure that if they had been that they would've smashed in his hurry to get to her.

His heart nearly shattered as he burst through her door to see her lying on her back on the floor by the foot of the bed. She's shaking and her jaw is tensed against the tears that are leaking out from behind clenched eyelids. Her body is contorted and he can only guess that she was stuck trying to get up off the floor, the agony currently etched on her face letting him know that her body had betrayed her and kept her from getting up.

"God, Bones," he rushed and knelt by her side, hands hovering over her, unsure of where he should touch her first, "What happened?"

"Hurts," she grinds out through gritted teeth and he's caught between leaving her on the floor and going to get her pain medication or moving her but by doing so making her wait precious minutes before she gets relief from the pain.

"I'm going to get your meds Bones okay," he shushes her, "Just don't go anywhere okay."

If she was in less pain and he wasn't so worried about her that comment alone would've spurred bickering but as it was it only earned a pained whimper from her and the sound of his heels banging on the floorboards as he raced to get her medication and a smoothie to help her wash it down.

She hadn't moved when he returned and his heart broke a little more as she bit back a sob when he moved her from the floor to the bed.

"I know, I'm sorry, it'll be better soon," he soothed as he placed her gingerly on the bed.

The pillows were already arranged to offer her battered body as much support as they could so she was able to swallow the pills propped up by the pillows. He forced her to drink as much of the smoothie as he could and when she was done he took the glass from her and sat by her head, letting his fingers comb through her hair. When the furrow between her brow smoothed out he knew the pills had started to work and he relaxed knowing she wasn't in as much pain.

"You feeling a little better?" he asked softly, giving her a small smile when her blue eyes met his.

"Yes," she nodded, "I apologise for you having to deal with this."

"Bones," he sighed, "I told you already. Helping you is not a burden, I want to be here, I'm glad I can help you."

"Well I think you should go," she said turning her head from him.

"What?" he asked, confused at her sudden mood swing.

"I said you should probably go," she replied without looking at him, "Now that you have seen that I am fine then you can go. I don't need you here."

He knew a side effect of her medication could be that she would experience heightened moments of emotion. Pain medication had different effects on different people and he thought that the pills could explain this sudden anger.

"I need to be here Bones," he said, "Hell I want to be here."

"Well I don't need you," she spat back, moving as if to cross her arms over her chest but stopping when it pulled at her broken ribs.

In his experience as an FBI agent Booth had come to rely on several things, his gut and his ability to read people. A part of reading people was listening to what they didn't say and she had said twice that she hadn't needed him there, something he knew to be a lie as she couldn't even move from the floor without his assistance, but glaringly obvious to him is what wasn't said. She had not once said that she didn't want him there and that was what he clung to while she got angry with him.

"I'm not going anywhere Bones so why don't you just say what you need to say and we can move on," he said getting up in her space, "You were angry at me for calling your father as well Bones so why don't you just tell me what I did to piss you off so much because this morning I thought things were getting better between us and now," he trailed off.

"You didn't do anything!" she yelled and he knew if she had the strength she would be up off the bed in a second. Anger made her feel out of control and she would pace to give her body focus while her mind sorted through her frustration.

"Then why are you so angry?" he asked.

"For someone who claims to be so good at understanding people you sure are having a difficult time with this," she cried.

He tried to remain calm, knew that giving in to her need for a fight would only make things worse but he had always had trouble keeping his own frustrations in check and so lashed out at her in retaliation.

"Well why don't you clue me in since you're so clever," he retorted, "Because I sure as hell don't know what I could have possibly done to you that would make you treat me like this. Jesus Bones, one minute you're kissing me and then the next minute you're tearing at my throat. What the hell did I do?"

"You didn't do anything!" she yelled, "You could've stopped me from leaving but you just let me walk away and get on that plane! Nobody could've made me stay but you Booth but you said nothing. You had to go and play the hero like I asked you not to and you let me go. If you had asked me to stay I would've and none of this would've happened. Th-they would still be alive and none of this would've ever happened."

She sucked in a gasping breath as she finished her tirade and curled in on herself as much as her body would allow. Booth was too stunned to move, his body frozen as her words sunk in. She blamed him for what happened to her and to the people who were killed. Him. She blamed him.

"Bones I-I," he stuttered, not even sure what to say.

"Save it Booth," she muttered, "I-I can't deal with this right now."

"No, uh, you're right," he said, still frozen in shock, "I'm sorry."

She had visibly deflated in front of him as if the fight had taken every ounce of energy from her. They both held this bodies still as if either one were too afraid to be the first one to move and break the silence that had enveloped the room. While he tried to process what she had revealed his heart pounded erratically in his ears. A long time ago he had stopped wondering about what ifs, to save his own sanity but now they came creeping back in.

What if he had asked her to stay?

_She wanted you to ask her to stay. _His brain supplied and that fact alone made his heart flutter. _But she blames you for what happened to her. _He reasoned with himself. This thought alone bringing the end to any elation he felt.

Sneaking a glance at her he could tell she was processing what he had said as well. Revealing things in the heat of the argument generally never ended well for either party and he knew that he had said some hurtful things as well.

"You kissed me?" she asked finally.

"Yes," he murmured.

"When?"

"Look Bones I…"

"When?" she interrupted him.

"The other night," he sighed, "You had a flashback and you thought I wasn't real. You-you said some stuff and then you kissed me and I kissed you back. I'm sorry Bones, I know it wasn't right but I couldn't stop myself. I lo-"

"Get out."

"What?" he panicked reaching for her, "No Bones just let me explain."

"I said get out," she her head away, "Call Angela. If you insist of having me supervised at all times like some invalid then call Angela. I want you to leave Booth."

"No Bones," he said, "I'm not leaving without you letting me explain."

"I don't want your explanations as to why you took advantage of me," she said deadpan, "Call Angela, have her come over and then you can leave. I don't want to see you again."

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**A/N: Well if there is anybody out there thank you for reading this chapter after such a long wait. I hope you enjoyed it and I promise the next one will be up soon.**


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed the last chapter. So glad there are still people out there reading this story. Hope you enjoy the next chapter.**

* * *

After a brief phone call to Angela, Booth paced restlessly around her living room. His limbs trembled with restless energy and he knew if Angela didn't get there soon he was going to do something he would later regret. He was angry, angry with her kidnappers, angry with himself but in that moment most of all he was angry with her.

How could she blame him for what happened to her?

If she had given him any indication that she was ready for them to be more then he would've been the first to jump at the chance, but she had turned him down and broken his heart. When she had rejected him on the steps of the FBI building he had felt like his chest was caving in with the grief that engulfed him and he didn't think he would ever recover.

He wasn't ready to feel that sort of pain again so instead he turned to anger. Anger had served him well growing up. There was only so much he could do to stop his father from beating his mother and his brother and so getting angry about it had at least given him an outlet for the guilt he felt at not being able to protect them properly. Since then anger and aggression had been something he relied on to stop himself from wallowing in self pity. When Rebecca had taken Parker from him the first time he had broken several knuckles punching the wall of his apartment. He had bought a punching bag after that to save himself the expense of fixing the dry wall every time something didn't go the way he planned.

Being angry was definitely what he needed right now.

"Booth, what the hell?" Angela asked as she rushed through the front door of the apartment.

The chunky necklace the artist wore around her neck clunked noisily as she strode across the apartment towards him. While her words were said in anger and confusion the artist clearly looked worried.

"She doesn't want me here anymore Ange," he sighed running a frustrated hand through his hair.

"Since when are you so blind to what she wants?" Angela asked.

"Since she's blaming me for what happened to her," Booth growled, "Look Ange if she wants me gone then I'm going to go. I don't want to upset her anymore than necessary."

"So you're just going to abandon her when she needs you most because she said something in the heat of the moment that she doesn't even mean?" Angela said, "You know her Booth. She needs to try and rationalise things and is going to cling to any explanation she can for what happened to her. Don't let her push you away. You have to know she doesn't actually blame you."

"She seemed pretty sure about it Ange," he sighed, "And to be honest with you I don't want to fight with her about it. If she wants to blame me then she can blame me but I can't be here if that's what is going to happen."

"Are you even listening to yourself?" Angela asked poking him in the chest, "She's hurt and upset, she needs to lash out at someone and you are the person she trusts the most. She thinks that even if she yells at you then you will stick around and take it. If you leave her now then you'll just be reaffirming everything she thinks she knows about the people who supposedly care about her. She loves you Booth, just stick around long enough for her to tell you."

"If she loved me then she wouldn't blame me for what happened," Booth said stalking towards the door, "If she loved me then she wouldn't look like I had just killed her cat when she found out we kissed."

With that he was out the door and storming down the hallway away from her apartment. The air in there had been stifling and he couldn't stay there any longer. He couldn't bare to see the look on her face knowing that every time she looked at him she would blame him for what had happened to her.

What angered him the most was that he knew if he was being honest with himself then he would know that she had given him some signs that she wanted more but he had been too afraid to act on it. Afraid that he was reading the signals wrong and he would get his heart shattered again so soon after he had laid himself out there the first time.

Maybe it was his fault.

* * *

Brennan was sound asleep when Angela checked in on her and the worried artist didn't miss the dried tear tracks on her best friend's cheeks. The relationship the scientist shared with her partner was complicated at the best of times but in the emotional upheaval of the last couple of weeks it had gotten even more so. Angela had thought that this might actually bring the two of them closer together but it seemed like it was going to have the opposite effect.

Settling herself into the chair that sat in her friend's bedroom the artist got out her phone to entertain herself while she waited for Brennan to wake up. She knew her friend didn't mean what she had said to Booth, that she was just scared of what she was feeling deep down but she was disappointed that the FBI agent had given in so easily.

Her best friend was one of the most stubborn people she had ever met. If Booth had asked her to stay she knew that Brennan would've have said no, not because she didn't love him but because she would have reasoned that with a commitment already made to the dig that going would have been the most rational thing to do.

Her phone buzzed in her hand and she startled, smiling at her husband's goofy grin that showed up on the screen.

"Hey Hodgins," she said.

"What's going on Angie?" he asked from the other end of the line.

"I think I'm going to be staying here with Bren for awhile," she told him, "Do you think you could pack me a bag and bring it over?"

"Of course, anything you guys need," he agreed quickly, "Can I ask why?"

"Booth left," she sighed, "Bren said some things that hurt him and he's gone."

"What! That is so not like the G-Man I know," Hodgins exclaimed, "I mean if there's anyone who can deal with Brennan it's Booth."

"He thinks he's doing the right thing," she sighed, "She's blaming him for what happened and told him to go so he went. He said he doesn't want to hurt her by being here."

"He'll hurt her more by not being there," Hodgins said.

"You know that and I know that but apparently our two friends are too dense to see what is right in front of their faces," Angela replied.

"Well if there's anyone who can talk some sense into her it's you," her husband said, "Take care of our little peanut and I'll be over with some things for you soon."

"Thanks honey, see you soon," Angela said before clicking off the call.

By the time Brennan woke up several hours later Angela had cleaned the living room and accepted a delivery or her overnight bag from her husband. She had asked her partner to stay but he had declined, knowing how important it was that she be there for her friend.

"Sweetie," Angela said as soon as Brennan stirred and sat up gingerly as much as she could, "You and I need to talk."

"By definition what we are doing right now is talking," Brennan said groggily as she rubbed her eyes.

"Okay let me rephrase," Angela smiled despite herself, "You and I need to talk about something specific."

"If you are referencing the fact that I asked Booth to leave then I don't think we really need to discuss it," Brennan replied, "The pain medication I am on at the moment is making it difficult for me to concentrate and I do not wish to have any conversations of a serious nature while I am not at full capacity mentally."

"Seems to me you're fully capable," Angela shrugged, "But if that's the way you want to play it I will play your game for a little while."

"What game?" Brennan asked.

"Never mind honey," Angela chuckled, "Now what do you say I help you shower and you get changed into some clothes that aren't sweats."

She looked through her friend's wardrobe and found a simple cotton dress that buttoned up the front, meaning Brennan wouldn't have to lift her arms to put it on. As she helped her friend move towards the bathroom Angela worried that this would end much like the last time she had helped Brennan shower. While getting clean was a necessity she suddenly wasn't sure that showering was the best idea.

"Bren, I was thinking in order to help you gain back a little independence that maybe instead of showering we might try having a sponge bath," she continued hurriedly when Brennan balked, "That way you will be able to do most of it yourself and I will only have to do your back and legs."

Pretending not to hear the pained gasp that escaped Brennan's lips as Angela lowered her to sit on the edge of her bathtub, the artist talked about potential baby names. Once she was sure Brennan wouldn't topple over she moved over to the sink and got the necessary items for the bath.

"I've already told Hodgins that we aren't doing the Jack the fourth thing," she said moving to help Brennan take her shirt off, "He seems to be okay with it but he also hasn't been keen on any of my picks so far."

They managed to slide Brennan's pants down her legs without too much pain and after quickly helping her wash Angela left her friend alone to do what she could, promising that she would be within ear shot for when she was done and dressed.

She knew at some stage she would have to get Brennan to talk about what happened with Booth but wasn't sure of the right way to approach it. Obviously asking outright as she had done earlier wasn't going to work so she would have to find some other way of getting the information out of her friend.

A sharp cry from the bathroom pulled her from her thoughts and she was on her feet in an instant racing towards the direction of the sound.

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**A/N: All the reviews have been incredible. Thanks so much for the wonderful support. So great to know that people are reading and enjoying the story so don't be shy, let me know what you think.**


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: I'm back from my summer holiday so I should hopefully be able to update a little quicker. Thanks for those who have stuck with me. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.**

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Screams.

Hoarse, painful screaming filled her ears and she whipped her head from side to side to try and find the source of the noise.

"Dr Brennan, Dr Brennan it's okay," she heard and she could feel a cool hand grasp her shoulder tightly. I was only when the cool skin contacted with her own that she realised the horrible noises were coming from her.

Looking up into the concerned eyes of Daisy Wick it took her a moment to realise that she was crouched in the corner of her bedroom, the wood of her dresser digging painfully into her side.

"Your name is Doctor Temperance Brennan, you work at the Jeffersonian Institute as a forensic anthropologist. You were on a dig in the Maluku islands where you were kidnapped but you are now home and safe in Washington," Daisy said, her voice calm and level.

"What happened?" Brennan asked sucking in a deep breath.

"You experienced a panic attack," Daisy said softly, "We believe it was triggered by the sound of a car backfiring outside."

"We?" Brennan asked, gasping when her ribs pulled as she tried to sit up.

"Sweets, Angela and myself," Daisy said, "We have been staying here for the last couple of days, remember?"

"No, I-I don't remember," Brennan said, her brow furrowing in confusion.

"You have been on some pretty strong pain killers," Daisy reasoned, "And Lance said that losing time was a symptom of PTSD."

"PTSD? I don't have PTSD," Brennan said, shaking her head as Daisy helped her stand.

"Sweetie," Angela's voice followed the smell of coffee into the bedroom, "You do but that's okay."

"It's not okay," Brennan growled, "I don't have PTSD and it is not fair of you to make such an unfounded claim."

"Unfounded," Angela said angrily, the tray she held dropping noisily to the bedside table as the artist stood with her hands on her hips, "You think they're unfounded? You think hearing your best friend screaming because a sound outside reminds her of gunfire is unfounded? You think watching your best friend cower in the corner because the sound of water dripping takes her back to a place where she was kidnapped and tortured is unfounded? You think having your best friend be so terrified of you because she doesn't recognise who you are but thinks you are one of those men who hurt her is unfounded? Sweetie I love you and I would do anything to help you but we can't do that until you accept that you have a problem."

The artist turned and stormed from the room nearly colliding with Sweets who had been standing in the hallway outside the bedroom.

"I thought I said we would broach the subject delicately," Sweets said with a raised eyebrow.

"She's getting worse," Angela argued, "Since she sent him away they've gotten worse and more frequent. She needs him here and until she realises that she has a problem and that he is part of the solution there is only so much we can do."

"You know you've always been very insightful," Sweets mused, "But you have to understand that the trauma Dr Brennan has suffered has made her question everything she knew about herself."

"What do you mean?" the artist asked as they moved towards the living room.

"Well despite the fact that she now prefers to spend time with Daisy," Sweets said with a quirk of a smile, "One of the reasons she left for the dig was that she was finding the work here with the FBI was burning her out. Going to Maluku was a return to the work she loved and yet it was doing this work where she got hurt."

"She's been hurt before doing that work," Angela argued.

"Yes, she has, but this is more than that. She went on this dig for personal as well as professional reasons. Consciously she thought she was going because it would be a great opportunity for her professional career but really she was running away from feelings she couldn't comprehend. On one hand she was scared of what she was feeling for Agent Booth so felt like separation would help her deal with this but on the other she was waiting for Booth to tell her to stay, to confess what he felt for her."

"Booth said she blamed him for what happened," Angela said softly.

"If I had to guess I would say that Dr Brennan thinks that if Booth had confessed how he felt before she left, if he'd asked her not to get on that flight than maybe none of this would ever have happened," Sweets said.

"That's not true," Angela gasped, "How can she think that?"

"She's clinging to whatever explanation she can for what happened," Sweets explained, "What happened to her was horrible and tragic and there is no rational explanation and so she has to try and find an explanation for it so that it makes sense. A rational string of events would be if Booth had asked her to stay and she had and then no one would have been killed. The real people to blame are not here so she must find someone she can funnel that blame into and unfortunately that so happens to be Agent Booth."

"If he'd asked, do you think she would have stayed?" Angela asked dropping onto the couch.

"No," Sweets shook his head sadly, "I don't."

"Then all this hurt is for nothing," Angela dropped her head into her hands.

"I think in the end things will work out," Sweets said resting his hand on her shoulder briefly."

"We need to get him back here," Angela said resolutely.

"I don't think it's going to be that easy," the psychologist replied but the artist was already determinedly dialling a number on her phone.

* * *

The Founding Fathers was known for many things. You could get probably the best plate of chicken wings in the city there, the music was always something you recognised and if you wanted a scotch at ten in the morning the bartender would serve you without judgement.

The bar looked different in the light of day. The cosy booths seemed open and the shadowed nooks where couples often retreated to in the dark of night looked simply like the corners of the room that they were. Cam's heels stuck to the sticky bar floor but that didn't stop her determined stride when she spotted her target sitting at the far corner of the bar.

Sliding onto the bar stool next to him she silently signalled the bartender to bring her a drink before resting her elbows up onto the counter. She didn't speak or turn to look at him knowing that he would speak when he was ready. Years of friendship and the off again on again relationship they had once shared had taught them a lot about one another and knowing the nuances of his personality afforded her a couple of minutes to think about exactly how she was going to tackle this.

"What are you doing here Camille?" he asked, his voice rough from disuse.

"I came to pull your stubborn head out of your ass Seeley," she replied, "And don't call me Camille."

"Don't call me Seeley," he replied without pausing.

The bartender returns with her drink then and she slides some money, enough to cover the both of their drinks to the man before taking a sip. Ten in the morning is really far too early for a scotch but the situation calls for it and she was not going to let him drink alone.

"This is my first one," he clinked his glass with hers as if reading her thoughts.

"For this morning?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes," he nods.

"While I'm glad to see you're not drinking yourself stupid the same couldn't be said for your grooming skills," she nodded towards the two day old stubble currently growing on his chin.

"Somehow shaving just doesn't seem high on my list of priorities right now," he growled.

"Clearly your list of priorities is all wrong if you're sitting here at ten in the morning drinking scotch instead of being with your partner who clearly needs you there."

"She doesn't need me," he took another sip of his drink, grimacing as the liquid burned the back of his throat.

"Please, who do you think you're kidding?" Cam replied incredulously, "I know you Seeley and you don't give up on the ones you care about."

"Did anyone ever stop to consider that it might hurt **me **too much to be there. That maybe I couldn't handle being there while she blamed **me **for every one of the horrible things that were done to her? Every one is so quick to tell me that I should be there for her, that she needs me but no one seems to think that maybe I can't deal with her hating me. Maybe I can't look at the bruises all over her body without hating myself. That her screams cut me down to the core. So don't come in here and tell me what I should be doing Camille because I already feel bad enough, I don't need you making me feel any more guilty."

"You know it isn't your fault," Cam said quietly, "None of this is your fault."

"Just leave me alone Cam," he replied, "I really don't feel like company."

"You're not even going to ask how she is?" Cam asked.

"I don't want to know," he replied but the lie was so blatant that the pathologist saw right through it.

"She's getting worse Booth," Cam said standing up from the bar stool, "Sweets and Daisy have been staying at her apartment because Daisy seems to be the only one who can bring her around from the panic attacks. She needs you there but I'm not sure you're going to be much help to anyone if you can't stop for a second and really think about your partner and what she is really trying to tell you."

He didn't watch her as she left the bar, instead he sighed and signalled the bartender to bring him another. She was right, he was stubborn and that just might be the thing that broke them forever.


End file.
